British finance minister John Healey will meet the bosses of several major companies on Monday to discuss the government’s plans to generate economic growth, Downing Street said.
• Healey will host a reception with the chief executives of companies including banks HSBC and Standard Chartered, oil majors BP and Shell, and telecom firms BT and Vodafone.
• Prime Minister Andy Burnham had been due to host the event, but cancelled engagements on Monday and Tuesday after the death of his father.
• Burnham’s Downing Street office earlier said that he had planned to tell the businesses that the government’s plans for devolution could help deliver much-needed infrastructure and he wanted to support a culture shift to back innovation.
• The meeting with the bosses of Britain’s biggest energy companies follows a report Burnham is set to delay a decision on whether to bring the Shell-backed Jackdaw gas field online until after a parliamentary by-election next month.
• Ahead of the reception, Healey will also hold a roundtable with British entrepreneurs from the fields of fintech, AI, clean energy and advanced manufacturing.
• Last week Healey used his first major speech since taking office to set out a brighter vision for the economy before an annual budget where he faces tough tax and spending choices.
(Reporting by Alistair Smout）
