Treasury Minister says businesses have woke ‘checklist’ – and tells them to stay out of politics
A SENIOR Treasury minister has said he is “uncomfortable” with businesses “appropriating the views of their customers to make a political point” in a broadside against corporate woke culture.
John Glen told the think-tank Bright Blue’s Centre Write magazine that “the mainstream majority of this country want businesses to provide value for money and quality services and goods that they can rely on, and probably want them to keep out of politics,”
The calls for business to stay out of politics comes amid an ongoing row over Nigel Farage’s banking arrangements, with the former UKIP leader barred from having a Natwest-owned Coutts bank account due to his political views.
That decision, and a media leak, cost Natwest CEO Dame Alison Rose her job.
Glen appeared to take aim at a wider culture of so-called ‘ESG’ tick-boxing.
“I think where we’ve got to now is that we’ve almost got a checklist of things that a business has to say and do in order to be deemed to be socially and ethically on the right side of the line. And I’m not sure about this,” Glen said.
He appeared to criticise Bud Light for a recent advertising campaign alongside a trans influencer, which has become a touchpoint in the US’ culture wars.
A number of consumers have vowed not to buy the beer after the advert.
“We’ve seen what can happen in recent months. Think of that US beer brand, where consumers reacted rather differently than was anticipated,” he said.
“I’m uncomfortable, instinctively, to see big businesses appropriating the views of their customers to make a political point. If they want to get into politics, then stand for election.”
Coffee chain Costa is also under fire for recent marketing material which saw a transgender person with mastectomy scars pictured in a mural.
Glen also indicated that tax cuts may be on the way once the government feels comfortable with the public finances.
“I’m nervous of situations where Conservative Governments intervene too much in the market, and I’m anxious that we should move to a position as quickly as we can when taxes are falling. We can only do that when we also respect the primary rule, which is sound money,” he said.
Over the weekend some backbench Tory MPs upped the ante on the need for reductions in the tax burden, calls so far resisted by PM Rishi Sunak and Chancellor Jeremy Hunt.