The year 2021 represents a “turning point” for the UK economy, according to Confederation of British Industry (CBI) president, Lord Karan Bilimoria.

Speaking at the Pensions and Lifetime Savings Association Investment Conference 2021, Bilimoria called for the nation to seize the “opportunities” presented by the current situation and outlined the CBI’s proposals for a national economic strategy.

Bilimoria said: “We know our deal with the European Union marks a fundamental reset, with the months since Brexit having been a period of adjustment. There are real positives from the agreement, such as zero tariffs and zero quotas, so that is good. No deal would have been a disaster, it would have been a huge price to pay, but we have a deal now and we have a platform to build on.

“We cannot ignore the realities of our new trading relationship: friction and delays at the border, challenges of exporting to Northern Ireland, companies making difficult operational decisions across their supply chains and, as a businessman myself, I know how much this kind of uncertainty can deter those who might otherwise be exporting and trading.”

However, he stressed that his hope was that the nation could use the new deal as a “jumping off point” to grasp the “opportunities that lie ahead”, such as increasing our trade globally by ramping up business dealings with countries such as India and Trans-Pacific Partnership 11 members.

He continued: “We have got to reject protectionism, increase the UK’s role on the world stage and we know that countries which are open to international trade and talent grow faster, are more innovative and are more productive, with real benefits to people, whether that means lower prices or higher wages.

“We should be unapologetic about our openness and our ambition. We should be shouting from the rooftops.”

He noted that the country was not short of chances to begin making headway with boosting global trade, pointing out that the UK hosting will be hosting the 2021 United Nations Climate Change Conference in November and the G7 in June, as well as inviting delegates from South Korea, Australia and India.

Looking ahead to the longer term, Bilimoria was also positive, stressing the importance of the UK’s top universities making the nation a “magnet for international students” and a hub for research.

However, he admitted: “We still have longstanding challenges, such as regional inequality, persistently low levels of business investment, no clear pathway in skills and weak productivity growth.”

As such, Bilimoria stated that the CBI were pressing for a national economic strategy that would be created by a mixture of businesses, unions, government, academia and civil society.

He stated that the organisation was working “in full flow” to build a strategy for “a truly competitive, dynamic and modern economy”.

Bilimoria continued: “Emerging from the shadows of this crisis, we have a chance to reset. To step back and imagine the kind of economy and society that we want to return to when the pandemic is over.

“We’ve done it before. In the middle of the Second World War, we had the Beveridge Report in 1942, which led to post-war reconstruction, the NHS and the welfare state, which changed the history of our country. A state and a people committed to building a better country for those people who lived there from the rubble of The Blitz.

“History will judge us on how we use this moment of crisis to map our path to 2030.”

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