The Industry Forum Ltd, 20 St Andrew Street, EC4A 3AG, London
info@industry-forum.org
+44 (0)20 7434 0090
The Industry Forum Ltd, 20 St Andrew Street, EC4A 3AG, London
The UK economic recovery was on course with good 2026 Q1 GDP growth figures, but this progress is in danger of being undermined by international turbulence, particularly the Iran war, and a home-grown leadership crisis. The Industry Forum has always maintained that on economic and business grounds the most secure and prosperous future for the UK lies in taking an active role within the EU.
Last December we published a short paper, ‘Europe on the Brink’ outlining the new threats facing the whole of democratic Europe and suggesting a way forward. In January this year, we published a paper ‘The Case for UK Electoral Reform,’ highlighting the risky consequences of continuing with the first-past-the-post system in a multi-party world; these predictions were proved correct in the May local elections.
While the UK leadership question is being resolved, we are taking steps to work with other organisations concerned with the key issues of European cooperation, and reform of the UK electoral system. We are holding a meeting, sponsored by Business with Europe, on plans for a UK/EU reset, and working with ’Make Votes Matter’ to help businesses understand the economic and practical issues arising from our current electoral system. There is a vast amount to do to tackle such issues and continue the economic recovery in fast-changing circumstances. We will continue to promote rational dialogue as the best way to achieve lasting solutions and hope that the UK will emerge from the current leadership crisis with clarity and determination to meet the challenges facing us, without resorting to easy answers,
Last month we held a spring reception bringing together members and guests from business and politics, and also a roundtable on the major issue of achieving integrated surface transport for the country. Our research projects for this summer will cover meeting our housing and climate change targets, as well as the contribution of public services to a buoyant economy. We are planning an extensive roundtable programme for the rest of 2026.
