UK rolls out red carpet to foreign investors at inaugural summit

London

THE British government and the royal family are hosting an inaugural investment summit in London on Tuesday (Oct 19) to attract foreign investment and expertise to the UK.

Among the VIPs on the guest list are Microsoft founder Bill Gates, JPMorgan Chase chairman and chief executive officer (CEO) Jamie Dimon, and BlackRock chairman and CEO Larry Fink. Among the major overseas investors expected to attend are officials from Abu Dhabi's US$243 billion sovereign wealth fund Mubadala.

UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson will deliver a speech at the Global Investment Summit, which will also have Queen Elizabeth and senior royals present as they try to secure overseas investment into Britain.

The investment drive mirrors French President Emmanuel Macron's drive to "Choose France", a similar event held earlier this year to attract foreign direct investment.

Johnson has not had the easiest of relationships with the business community - Brexit has taken its toll on companies' supply chains, while the Covid-19 pandemic has shuttered scores of companies and affected thousands of jobs.

Firms are also struggling to cope with rising inflation, surging energy costs and labour shortages.

On Monday evening, Johnson invited 20 of the world's richest and most influential executives to a dinner at 10 Downing Street to boost post-Brexit growth.

At a separate venue, Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak hosted a separate dinner for bankers and business leaders together with Lord Mayor of the City of London, William Russell.

These two gala functions served as a prelude to the main summit on Tuesday at the Science Museum, where some 200 attendees will listen to speakers including UK Business Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng, Rolls-Royce chief Warren East, GlaxoSmithKline chief Emma Walmsley, and Barclays CEO Jess Staley.

After the conference and lunch, the guests will board a bus with a motorcade escort and head to Windsor Castle for a reception hosted by the Queen, the Prince of Wales, the Duke of Cambridge, the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester and Prince Michael of Kent.

The Queen, who will also attend the United Nations Climate Change Conference in Glasgow at the end of October, is expected to stress the importance of tackling climate change in front of her high-profile guests.

Billions of pounds of investment into green energy are expected to be announced during the conference as a demonstration that the UK intends to cut carbon emissions to net zero by 2050.

There have been several major foreign acquisitions in the past 12 months, including the £7 billion (S$13 billion) takeover of supermarket chain Morrisons. Around £5.8 billion of foreign investment has been secured in green projects, 10 Downing Street announced recently. It includes more than £650 million in advancing offshore wind, around £900 million in accelerating the shift to zero-emissions vehicles, and some £400 million in electric-vehicle battery manufacturing.

Ford disclosed that it would invest £230 million to transform its plant in Merseyside, northwest England and build electric power units. This is the US automotive giant's first facility of its type in Europe, a Ford official said.

"From car-battery makers to wind turbine designers, we are laying the foundations for a new era of green jobs and decades of economic growth to come," said Kwarteng, the Business and Energy Secretary.