UK business leaders call on incoming government to restore public trust

The Institute of Directors has issued its own manifesto ahead of the general election on December 12

The Institute of Directors called on the next government ot 'combine the profit motive with social responsibility'. Getty Images

Business leaders in the UK on Wednesday called on Britain’s next government to work with them to restore trust in how the country’s companies are run.

The Institute of Directors (IoD) set out a ten-point plan to boost UK corporate governance in the run up to the general election next month, calling on the government to support the establishment of a Code of Conduct setting out ethical standards for directors.

The group also asked the government to encourage minimum training requirements for new directors, noting that there are currently no formal standards for board members even at the highest levels of the UK’s largest companies.

Dr Roger Barker, Head of Corporate Governance at the Institute of Directors, said: “At this election, the spotlight is very much on how businesses are, and should be, run.

“Committing to a code of conduct and to minimum standards of training – common in other walks of life – would make it clear that business leaders take the public’s concerns to heart.”

The IoD also recommended the creation of a new form of company, to take on public contracts, in an effort to respond to concerns over government outsourcing.

These so-called Public Service Corporations, the IoD said, would legally require businesses to balance the interests of workers, shareholders and other stakeholders.

The group also advocated stronger rules on how companies report on their climate change impact, and called for Government to explore setting up a Sovereign Wealth Fund to invest in the green economy.

“We should be more ambitious, and explore new ways to combine the profit motive with social responsibility, to confront the challenges facing the economy, not least climate change,” Dr Barker said.

The UK, Dr Barker said, is “a globally attractive destination for business, and our corporate governance framework has been imitated around the world. But we can’t rest on our laurels, and business leaders must do more to regain public trust”.