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The boss of a leading corporate advisory firm has rejected the chance to join the UK government as investment minister, leaving Sir Keir Starmer with a glaring vacancy on the eve of a high-profile investment conference.
Benjamin Wegg-Prosser, head of the Global Counsel advisory group he co-founded with Peter Mandelson, had been the first choice of chancellor Rachel Reeves for the high-profile role.
The move sends the government “back to the drawing board” in search of an investment minister, said one business lobbyist, who added officials had signalled they would prioritise the “credibility” of the new candidate over speed of appointment.
Yet ministers risk running out of time to find an alternative figure to take up the role ahead of its “international investment summit” in London on October 14. Ministers are hoping to lure high-profile business figures from across the world to the event to promote investment in the UK.
The Labour government, which won a landslide in the general election in July, is seeking to present itself as pro-business, despite repeatedly warning that major tax rises are coming in its first Budget at the end of October.
Despite holding talks with figures including Downing Street chief of staff Sue Gray, Wegg-Prosser turned down the job in order to focus on his private sector career, government officials confirmed. Bloomberg first reported his rejection. Wegg-Prosser, who was also a communications director to former prime minister Tony Blair, declined to comment.
Global Counsel has offices in London, Brussels, Singapore and Doha, and provides regulatory and political advice to clients ranging from TikTok and JPMorgan to BP, Glencore and private equity groups.
It was valued at about £30mn earlier this year following a deal to sell a 20 per cent stake to the Messina Group, the investment firm founded in 2013 by former Barack Obama campaign manager Jim Messina.
The role of investment minister will be pivotal for the new Labour government’s relations with the business world, at a time when ministers hope to attract private investment into the UK economy.
The Labour government has appointed Varun Chandra, former head of Hakluyt, another advisory group, as Starmer’s special adviser on business and investment.
Although business leaders have welcomed some of Labour’s proactive measures, such as its promise to rip up planning laws to accelerate new infrastructure, some are wary about policies that include an overhaul of employees’ rights.
Ministers invited chief executives of some of the UK’s most high-profile companies into Whitehall on Tuesday morning for a “business breakfast”, in an effort to reassure them about a major package of employment legislation that will be put before parliament next month. Ministers signalled they want to avoid “unintended consequences” for businesses from the policies, said a person briefed on the meeting.
Wegg-Prosser would have been based in the Office for Investment — a joint Downing Street and business department unit — where his role would have involved courting potential investors.
Previous investment ministers have included Lord Gerry Grimstone, ex-deputy chair of Barclays, and Lord Dominic Johnson, who co-founded investment firm Somerset Capital Management.
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