News story

17th June 2002

Leading MP Visits Local Business Leaders

Leaders of the South Gloucestershire business community joined local political leaders today (Monday 17th) to meet Lib Dem Shadow Cabinet
member, Dr. Vincent Cable MP at the latest meeting of the South Gloucestershire Business Forum. The event, organised by Northavon MP Steve Webb was the latest in a series where key figures from the national and local stage get together with business leaders to discuss issues of common concern.

At Monday’s meeting, hosted by AstraZeneca at their plant on Severnside, Dr. Cable reviewed the state of the economy and identified key problems that the Government needed to address if business was to prosper. He highlighted the strength of sterling as a key factor in the continued struggles of large parts of manufacturing industry, and identified some of the unnecessary regulations which stifle businesses. Dr. Cable also pointed out that the failure to tackle housing market problems meant that many key workers could not afford to live in areas such as South Gloucestershire and that action on affordable housing needed to be a key part of any solution.

Dr. Cable’s contribution prompted a wide-ranging discussion with business leaders providing valuable first hand experiences of their own experiences with bureaucracy and red tape which Dr. Cable and Steve Webb indicated they would take back to Westminster.

Speaking after the event Steve Webb, who chairs the Forum, said:

“Events such as this are a very valuable way of local business people to make sure that politicians know how things are in the real world. The first hand experiences of business people in our own constituencies provide us with powerful ammunition to oppose unnecessary Government bureaucracy and red tape”.

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