What an extraordinary state of affairs, though perhaps we should not be surprised. The elites are out of touch. Polling carried out by the Centre for Enterprise, Markets and Ethics shows just how much those that lead business and those that lead the millions who attend churches on a Sunday have bought into an agenda which completely turns on its head the basis purposes of business.
Does business believe in business anymore?
That is one of the questions raised by this polling. What has happened to our business leadership? Business leaders appear to want more tax on business and, bizarrely, appear to believe that profitable business is not compatible with happiness in society. Wow! Profit not compatible with happiness.
The public though, don’t agree on just about every metric.
Business is supposed to be about delivering goods and services in a competitive market economy. In such a market there will be incentives and rewards and businesses will build up trust by producing high-quality goods at competitive prices. These ideas seem to have been pushed onto the back burner and replaced by an increasing reliance on government.
That, experience tells us, is unlikely to end well.
If those who are at the heart of enterprise don’t really believe in what they are doing the implications for both the economy and society are enormous.
The wokery of business leaders – they certainly think they should be advocating political messages – is simply not wanted by the public. Not wanted. Please stop. Please return to your basic purpose of supplying the goods and services in the market.
Oh, well, at least the faithful can take heart in the calm and peace of the Sunday worship. Not so. Those that preach to millions of the flock Sunday by Sunday appear, when it comes to business, to be proclaiming a message which is not believed by most of the recipients. And I can tell you, I have heard some appallingly ill-informed sermons on business and economics. Church leaders pontificate about multi-nationals, excess pay, pay ratios, whether business leaders care and, of course, they want us all to pay higher tax.
Well, the flock don’t buy it. They are not interested.
Why is it that the elites always want higher taxes? We should not be deluded by rhetoric that says it will all fall on the rich. Pull the other one. And in any event, excess tax doesn’t deliver, rather it suppresses innovation, creativity and reward – but too many big business leaders don’t seem to get that either.
Perhaps the public and the flock are better informed than the elites that purport to lead us?
The person in the pew knows full well that Amazon delivers, employs and even pays and collects free for the government a very large amount of tax well beyond corporation tax. I suspect the critical church leader still hovers the finger over ‘order now’.
Perhaps the experience of the worshipper is that their employers maybe care for their employees more than the church?
What are the lessons we can learn?
First, business should focus on business. Let’s return to the principles of high-quality goods produced at competitive practices by well-paid and cared for workers. Let’s encourage our business leaders to develop new and innovative ideas and products rather than put their time and effort into political campaigning. No thanks to the wokery. The public can make their own decisions on such matters. Just produce the goods.
Maybe the nation’s productivity would improve?
Perhaps it is innovation and market-based solutions which will contribute to solving environmental and climate challenges rather than big government?
Second, we must again advocate for a market economy, with thriving businesses and a flourishing society. We need to restore confidence in the market and enterprise, promote business independence and less reliance on the role of government and high taxation. We need once again to speak up for personal responsibility, for responsible saving and against the continued accumulation of government debt. And we need to restore confidence in Britain as a place for business.
The public understand that need. So too do the flock.
I do wonder if our elites have actually lost confidence in our great nation. They are certainly out of touch. Let’s get business back to business; and, indeed, the church back to its business.