Chief Secretary to the Treasury, Rt Hon Liz Truss MP, joined us at Pagefield this week for our ‘Meet the Minister’ breakfast. Ben Stetson provides his take.
In eight short years in Parliament, Liz Truss has ascended through the Ministerial ranks solidifying her seat round the Cabinet table. Serving in four Government Departments, two as Secretary of State, she was appointed Chief Secretary to the Treasury in 2017 and now has responsibility for the nation’s purse strings. All the while, she has garnered a cult following on social media as she attempts to give the Tory brand a 21st Century makeover. Here are just five of the things we learned:
- The economic revival is well and truly underway
Speaking shortly before the monthly employment statistics were published, Liz underlined the huge progress the UK economy has made.
Echoing the Chancellor’s ‘Tiggerish’ Spring Statement, she highlighted Britain’s falling debt and levels of borrowing under the Conservative Government. Moreover, a first in a long time, manufacturing in the UK has grown pointing to the early successes of the industrial strategy.
Likewise, productivity is on a positive trajectory and the growth of regional economies is helping to balance the economy geographically. To really drive the point home, she went straight from Pagefield to the TV studios welcoming the news that the employment rate is at the joint highest level since 1971.
- What the Government are listening for
Liz acknowledged that Brexit has been a critical moment for the Government’s relations with business, creating new opportunities but also posing new challenges.
The challenges are intimately linked to the Whitehall machine: the bandwidth has been stretched by Brexit preparations. Billions are being invested in resources to ensure that the UK has expertise and capabilities to approach the negotiations effectively.
When it comes to opportunities, the Government, and specifically the Treasury, don’t necessarily want to hear from the usual suspects alone. To drive growth over the next five years, businesses of all shapes and sizes need to articulate how their goods and services are stimulating competition, enterprise and choice for consumers.
- What businesses need to be doing
She was clear that the onus is also on individual businesses to tell their stories.
Citing her personal experience of seeing the Richard Bransons of the world inspire her in the 1980s, she wants entrepreneurs and disruptors to be contributing to the public debate. Only these leaders will inspire the next generation to emulate their success.
In 2018 where role models are found on social media as much as they are on television, it is not just the Government and politicians who should putting their heads above the parapet. In fact, increasingly it is the businesses that are breaking down the barriers of entry for consumers – like fintechs – that should be at the forefront of the public conversation challenging incumbents to deliver for the benefit of consumers, industry and wider society.
- The bigger picture for regulation beyond Brexit
With her Treasury hat firmly on, the Chief Secretary returned to one of the Government’s core messages: the need to improve the regulatory system so it reduces the barriers to entry and finds the right balance between incentivisation and complexity to stimulate innovation.
With a new dawn on the horizon, now is the time to lay the foundations to supercharge the economy and ensure enterprise can thrive for a prosperous future.
- Beating the drum for the free market
On a more party political note, Liz has firmly planted her fork in the ground as the flag bearer for free enterprise. Addressing the challenge posed by Corbyn’s Labour Party, she recognises that there is a fundamental battle of ideas being waged.
And if the Conservatives are to get emerge on top, they will need to more open and honest when communicating about the rewards of a market economy.
On Monday she spoke at the launch of the FREER campaign. Initiated by a fresh intake of Conservative MPs, the organisation will make the case for contemporary conservative values and the power of enterprise. Pagefield were on the ground on Monday night in Westminster and understands this venture has the backing of the Tory high command.
