I am pleased that we have already started discussions on future trade ties with countries like Australia, New Zealand and India. While countries including China, Brazil, and the Gulf States have already expressed their interest in striking trade deals with us.
文章源自英文巴士-https://www.en84.com/1906.html
That is why, as I said in my speech on Tuesday, I want the UK to emerge from this period of change as a truly Global Britain – the best friend and neighbour to our European partners, but a country that reaches beyond the borders of Europe, too; a country that gets out into the world to build relationships with old friends and new allies alike.文章源自英文巴士-https://www.en84.com/1906.html
文章源自英文巴士-https://www.en84.com/1906.html
And that is exactly what we are going to do.文章源自英文巴士-https://www.en84.com/1906.html
文章源自英文巴士-https://www.en84.com/1906.html
We are going to be a confident country that is in control of its own destiny once again.文章源自英文巴士-https://www.en84.com/1906.html
文章源自英文巴士-https://www.en84.com/1906.html
And it is because of that that we will be in a position to act in this global role.文章源自英文巴士-https://www.en84.com/1906.html
文章源自英文巴士-https://www.en84.com/1906.html
Because a country in control of its own destiny is more, not less able to play a full role in underpinning and strengthening the multilateral rules-based system.文章源自英文巴士-https://www.en84.com/1906.html
A Global Britain is no less British because we are a hub for foreign investment. Indeed, our biggest manufacturer, Tata, is Indian – and you still can’t get more British than a Jaguar or a Land Rover.
Britain is no less British because it is home to people from around the world. In fact, we derive so much of our strength from our diversity – we are a multi-racial, multi-ethnic, multi-faith democracy, and we’re proud of it.
And Britain is no less British because we have led the way in multilateral organisations like the UN, NATO, IMF and the World Bank over many years.
Membership of these bodies magnifies all their members’ ability to advance the common goods of peace, prosperity and security.
I believe strongly in a rules-based global order. The establishment of the institutions that give effect to it in the mid-20th century was a crucial foundation for much of the growing peace and prosperity the world has enjoyed since. And the tragic history of the first half of the last century reminds us of the cost of those institutions’ absence.
The litany of follies of that time are mistakes that we should never forget and never repeat.
So we must uphold the institutions that enable the nations of the world to work together.
And we must continue to promote international cooperation wherever we can.
One example of that is modern slavery – a scourge of our world, which we can only defeat if we work together, changing attitudes, rooting out such abhorrent practices and prosecuting the perpetrators.
That is why at Davos this year, I have convened a high-level panel discussion to continue our coordinated effort to save those many lives which are, tragically, being stolen.
International cooperation is vital. But we must never forget that our first responsibility as governments it to serve the people. And it is my firm belief that we – as governments, international institutions, businesses and individuals – need to do more to respond to the concerns of those who feel that the modern world has left them behind.
So in Britain, we have embarked on an ambitious programme of economic and social reform that aims to ensure that, as we build this Global Britain, we are able to take people with us. A programme that aims to show how a strong Britain abroad can be a better Britain at home.
Because talk of greater globalisation can make people fearful. For many, it means their jobs being outsourced and wages undercut. It means having to sit back as they watch their communities change around them.
And in their minds, it means watching as those who prosper seem to play by a different set of rules, while for many life remains a struggle as they get by, but don’t necessarily get on.
And these tensions and differences are increasingly exposed and exploited through the expansion of new technologies and the growth of social media.
But if we are to make the case for free markets, free trade and globalisation, as we must, those of us who believe in them must face up to and respond to the concerns people have.
And we must work together to shape new policies and approaches that demonstrate their capacity to deliver for all of the people in our respective countries.
I believe this challenge demands a new approach from government. And it requires a new approach from business, too.
For government, it means not just stepping back and, as the prevailing orthodoxy in many countries has argued for so many years, not just getting out of the way. Not just leaving businesses to get on with the job and assuming that problems will just fix themselves.
It means stepping up to a new, active role that backs businesses and ensures more people in all corners of the country share in the benefits of its success.
And for business, it means doing even more to spread those benefits to more people. It means playing by the same rules as everyone else when it comes to tax and behaviour, because in the UK, trust in business runs at just 35% among those in the lowest income brackets. And it means putting aside short-term considerations and investing in people and communities for the long term.
These are all things that I know the vast majority of businesses do already. Not just by creating jobs, supporting smaller businesses, training and developing people, but also by working to give something back to communities and supporting the next generation.
Businesses – large and small – are the backbone of our economies, and enterprise is the engine of our prosperity. That is why Britain is – and will always be – open for business: open to investment in our companies, infrastructure, universities and entrepreneurs; open to those who want to buy our goods and services; and open to talent and opportunities, from the arts to technology, finance to manufacturing.
But, at the same time as promoting this openness, we must heed the underlying feeling that there are some companies, particularly those with a global reach, who are playing by a different set of rules to ordinary, working people.
So it is essential for business to demonstrate leadership. To show that, in this globalised world, everyone is playing by the same rules, and that the benefits of economic success are there for all our citizens.
This work is absolutely crucial if we are to maintain public consent for a globalised economy and the businesses that operate within it.
That is why I have talked a great deal about our country delivering yet higher standards of corporate governance, to help make the UK the best place to invest of any major economy.
