General Election 2015: Alliance Trust CEO Katherine Garrett-Cox wants a sustainable economy and flexible working
ELECTION COUNTDOWN: 20 DAYS TO GO
Every day until the final week of the election campaign, we ask a business leader to say what policies would entice them to vote for a particular party.
KATHERINE GARRETT-COX: CEO, ALLIANCE TRUST
■ You commit to creating a healthy, sustainable economy which is so very important for the next generation of UK savers. We all need to save more and borrow less. A simple and effective way to encourage that at minimal cost to the government is to announce a further increase to the personal savings allowance in ISAs.
■ You promote financial literacy and increase spending on financial education. We need to increase knowledge among young people on how to prepare for their financial future and make sure they know what options are available to them. Furthermore, we need higher levels of support and advice right now for the generation approaching or already in retirement on how to navigate the new pension landscape and what the reforms mean to them.
■ You encourage the long-term ownership of financial assets for individuals and for professional managers as well. To help this you could abolish Stamp Duty on all share purchases. However, by the introduction of a similar tax payable at the point of sale we could encourage long-termism. This could be further augmented by tapering the charge depending on how long an investment has been held (i.e. investments held for more than five years might be exempt whereas those that are traded in and out of in seconds pay a higher rate).
■ You outline clear policies to facilitate flexible working patterns and encourage more working mothers back into the workforce and into senior business roles. This needs to include greater support to lower the burden of childcare costs which very often make it prohibitive for mothers to return to work post-maternity leave.
■ You make it mandatory for corporations to disclose in greater detail their environmental, social and governance performance alongside their financials. Investors are increasingly factoring sustainability factors into their investment decisions and better and more comparable disclosures from business would be a helpful and important next step in this area.
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