🇬🇧 💡 Has corporate Britain run out of ideas?
🇬🇧 💡 Has corporate Britain run out of ideas?
🇺🇸 How do we get more of the American entrepreneurial spirit?
🎙️ The Bowel Babe - the world’s most inspirational podcaster
🍺 Binary Botanical - a new beer for summer
⚽ Event: What does Manchester in 2030 look like?
Welcome to the 34 new subscribers since our last edition … If you are new here, my name is Jimmy McLoughlin, a former Downing Street adviser turned podcaster. I write this notebook on the most interesting things I have seen on the future of work, jobs, technology and somewhat occasionally politics.
🇬🇧 💡Has corporate Britain run out of idea’s?
It has been obvious for a while that energy sector profits were going to become a major political issue, so much so I tweeted in January following the Business Editor of The Times, Richard Fletcher’s excellent morning newsletter.
And so here we are, there is now a groundswell of support for a windfall levy, including from mainstream MPs like Robert Halfon #fightinghardforHarlow - although I was a little taken back by him calling them modern day British oligarchs.
But what I wasn’t quite expecting was senior business leaders coming out, such as grandee John Allan, Chair of Tesco, Barratt Homes and formerly President at the CBI. (Last week, I bemoaned how there is a lack of British business media and how Radio 4 are stripping back their business coverage. This week proved that business interviews can make interesting news!)
This is the same John Allan, who argued that Tesco should not pay any of the business rates relief it received in the first lockdown claiming he would defend the decision to ‘to the death.’
This was despite the fact, Tesco received a whopping £249 million relief from Government, had mega profits due to hospitality being closed, and saying it would pay shareholders a six month dividend of £315 million.
In fairness to Tesco, the arrival of the new CEO, Ken Murphy co-insided with a reversal of the decision.
In some ways, John Allan is perhaps the ultimate boomer, he said in 2017 that white men were an ‘endangered species’ in the board room. Five years on, nine of the fourteen on Tesco’s board are white men.
It is strange when business turns its fire on each other, precious few claimed the likes of BP should be bailed out in 2020 when it was heavy loss making - a point Andy Silvester has made in City AM.
As it has been the week of the Queens speech, the question has been posed has the Conservative government in its thirteenth year run out of ideas?
However, if raising taxes on each other is the best that business can come up with, should we ask has corporate Britain run out of ideas?
Adam Boulton on stepping down from Sky News said regarding boomers, ‘we’ve had our time’. What is desperately needed is a new generation of business leaders to step up and make the case for enterprise, entrepreneurs and innovation because at the moment, there seems to be a lack of passion.
Who is making the case for how we make a bigger cake, not just how we divide up?
🇺🇸 How do we get more of the American entrepreneurial spirit?
And so inevitably one turns to American for inspiration for how to back enterprise and entrepreneurship.
And we see tweets like this, and I think to myself, it is possible to go too far the other way.
🎙️ To the Bowel Babe, the world’s most inspirational podcaster
Dame Deborah James is an inspiration, she started documenting her battle with cancer in podcast form and since then has taken on many more media platforms with her writing columns and amassing a social media army.
We once spoke on a Clubhouse room that was being hosted by Hannah Russell of Mags Creative on how to host a great podcast.
You, me and the Big C has become as iconic to podcasting as Serial and she still spent time giving out tips to us more green podcasters, I had 8 episodes under my belt at that stage.
Her main advice was 'don’t overthink it’ something I was very guilty of doing in my earlier days.
I find it all so soul crushinghly sad, the silver lining is by the time this email lands in your inboxes, I imagine the total will be over £6 million and I think it’ll go past £10 million, hopefully before she passes. You can donate here.
I hope she raises a glass with Sir Tom Moore in the sky.
🍺 Binary Botanical - a new beer for summer
I love farmers markets, there is something wonderfully British and ever so middle class about them, whenever I walk into one, it reminds me of that wonderful Alexander Armstrong and Ben Miller sketch.
But once in a while, you really do stumble across a gem. Last weekend I came across a stall, which described its product as ‘beer for wine lovers’.
Seeing as I like both, the odds seemed stacked in its favour … and of course I indulged in a taster that was on offer, and it was delicious. But then I always think these tasters are tasty, (!) you could frankly serve me something up that looks like it came from the Jungle in a 25ml serving, and I’d say ‘hmmmmm … that’s good, that is’
But, dear reader, when I got home, it was even more delicious, this simply was a taste sensation, in your mid 30s, one thinks their palette may be as refined as it can ever get, but this was really up there.
It was light, tangy, not bitter and simply very moreish.
I did more research into the company and was even more impressed by what I found, British based ✅ female founder ✅ innovative ✅ beer ✅ wine ✅
If you have the mis fortunte of having me at your dinner party, BBQ or wedding this summer, I am afraid that I will lax lyrical about it
I have just stocked up my summer fridge with it, and you can too with the code Jimmy20 and you’ll get 20% off, this is not a paid Ad. I just really think it is that good and love the story. All their details are here.
⚽ Event: What does Manchester in 2030 look like?
Something that I am paid for is hosting and talking at events, and helping create amazing content. It is staggering how many firms put in masses of in house effort into events and then it misses the mark with a poor often inhouse host.
I am going to be doing that at a Manchester based conference on Thursday 9th June, with the team at MC2 who are a northern based agency.
We’ll be looking at what the next ten years holds for Greater Manchester, how it can position itself in the national agenda, not getting caught between the Red Wall and the Golden Triangle.
Speakers include
Andy Burnham
Dr Marilyn Comrie OBE, Director of The Blair Project
Professor Stephen Decent, Provost and Deputy Vice Chancellor, Manchester Metropolitan University
Chris Oglesby, CEO of Bruntwood
If you’re in and around the area and would like to attend, drop them a line at GM2030@thisismc2.com
Next week we’ll be releasing our episode with Governor of the Bank of England, Andrew Bailey, you’ll be the first to know if you subscribe to this newsletter 👇👇
If you want to partner with us in the coming months, check out our partnerships page here.
End of the Notebook …
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