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Sweeping statements
Linda Hall
SIR JAMES DYSON dismissed the British government’s approach to the economy and business as “stupid” and “shortsighted.”
Writing recently in the Daily Telegraph, the Dyson tycoon whose estimated fortune of €23 million was initially based on cordless vacuum cleaners, maintained that growth had become a “dirty word” since Rishi Sunak took over as Britain’s prime minister.
Dyson, who was a committed Brexit supporter, claimed that the government believed in its ability to impose “tax upon tax” on companies under the impression that penalising private industry was one way of winning votes.
“This is as short sighted as it is stupid,” Dyson warned in the Telegraph. “In the global economy, companies will simply choose to transfer jobs and invest elsewhere.”
Sir James also voiced unease at the workingfromhome policies introduced when the Covid pandemic was at its height. The government had yet to succeed in convincing employees to return to the workplace after having told them to stay home to prevent infection from spreading and avoid overloading an already overloaded NHS, he said.
The measure had damaged Britain’s work ethic, he insisted, while little had been done to emphasise the importance of facetoface collaboration, shared culture, mental health, productivity and output. The government had also neglected the training of young, new employees, which Dyson said was vital for the success of both businesses and employees.
Britain was capable of shaking off its “Covid inertia”, he added, but declared that things could be turned round only if fastgrowing companies were allowed to thrive there.
