While Westminster awaits the new UK Burnham administration with bated breath, the Industry Forum and Business with Europe held a meeting in central London on the topic of ‘How can Europe compete with US innovation.’ Policies of the Trump administration, and the military threat from Russia, both point to an urgent need for Europe to raise its game in the tech industries. The scope of this challenge is vast but the view from members and guests was that an urgent first step is to address the UK regulatory burden caused partially by Brexit and partially by the policies and regulations adopted by the EU. The Industry Forum is conducting a short research project on this subject over the Summer and we will have a discussion paper ready for the Autumn when we hope to hold further, more detailed meetings in conjunction with Business with Europe.

Kicking off the Industry Forum Autumn programme in style, this month, was The Lord Darroch of Kew (Kim Darroch) former UK Ambassador to Washington, and former UK Permanent Representative to the EU. The topic, with critical relevance to the UK economy, UK companies and UK jobs was ’Reinvigorating our Relationship with Europe.’ The discussion ranged over the implications of Russian intransigence, US unreliability and the rise of far-right political parties. There appear to be no quick answers to these problems and the wars they have spawned. There are many promising initiatives to strengthen Europe militarily and to bolster its sovereignty and economic performance, but moderate politicians are struggling to communicate urgency and the need for some financial sacrifice to their electors. Hopefully, the collegiate approach of the new UK Burnham-led administration will help the UK and Europe work more closely together. This meeting was hosted by the leading London law firm, Fieldfisher.

The UK has deep capital markets, a top international stock exchange and many retail stock market investors. Nevertheless, we frequently depend on international investors to fund public infrastructure and private sector projects, and companies. Callum Anderson, MP for Buckingham and Bletchley and Parliamentary Private Secretary for DSIT, who previously worked at the London Stock Exchange, will kick off a discussion on how this situation could be changed enabling UK domestic investment to help power growth. As usual this meeting will provide a good opportunity for members to raise questions and make policy suggestions based on their own experiences.

The Industry Forum and Business with Europe held a productive meeting to discuss UK-EU reset progress and priorities prior to the next summit meeting, likely in July 2026. It is clear that the relationship between the UK and the EU has dramatically improved since the election of the UK Labour government. The discussion was led by Trevor Greetham and Nick Harvey CEO of European Movement UK also participated. Useful progress to improve trade is being made in a number of sectors but the UK government’s red lines mean that dramatic and rapid improvements are unlikely. This will make it difficult for the government to reduce the extra Civil Service staff costs incurred to cope with Brexit, and there will be a similar cost burden for private sectors. For example, chemical industries have had to employ hundreds of extra chemists to deal with post Brexit regulations and many SMEs have had to accept the costs of increased regulation, or cease trading with EU customers. Hopefully, such economic considerations, and the transformed and more threatening geopolitical environment since 2016 will give rise to a more fundamental revision of the UK-EU relationship.

The Industry Forum held an event in April at RIA's London offices titled 'An integrated plan for the UK road and rail networks'.

Chair of the Transport Select Committee, Ruth Cadbury MP, led a roundtable discussion on a range of topics, including: the recent publication 'Better Connected: A Strategy for Integrated Transport'; how Great British Railways will bring together track, train and property; and the opportunities available to create a more joined-up network.

Doom mongering about politics and the world was suspended for a few hours this week for the Industry Forum annual spring reception, at the House of Commons. The keynote speaker was Emily Darlington MP for Milton Keynes and a member of Dame Chi Onwurah’s Select Committee for Science, Innovation and Technology. Emily, taking time off from electoral campaigning, was in buoyant form promoting the high tech, city of Milton Keynes and the promise of science and technology for the UK. The event was sponsored by the leading UK telecoms company, newly merged VodafoneThree. George Robinson, Head of Government Affairs at VodafoneThree welcomed guests and said a few cheerful words about the progress of the merger. It is clear that a strong digital communications infrastructure can help meet the government’s growth aims and that a big new player like VodafoneThree will help to achieve this. After the formalities, the reception turned into a party with members, business guests, diplomats and academics networking and making new contacts in the way that they have for done since the Industry Forum was set up 33 years ago.