Burnham-On-Sea MP James Heappey has this week said that foreign secretary Boris Johnson’s recent comments about business were “not helpful.”
At an event for EU diplomats in London last week, Johnson is reported to have replied “f**k business” when asked about corporate concerns over a hard Brexit.
And in the Commons this week, the foreign secretary refused to deny claims he had used the expletive.
Burnham-On-Sea’s MP James Heappey, who is chair of the All Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) for the events industry, said the foreign secretary’s comments were “not helpful at all.”
He added: “Since becoming chair of the APPG, the industry hasn’t been shy of relaying its concerns over Brexit. I’ve never thought the industry is being pessimistic or unpatriotic.”
“Business have every right to share where they think the risks are. The job is to reassure if we think they are wrong, or look at how to mitigate that if we agree with them.”
“I understand the foreign secretary and others are very closely wedded to the Brexit project and they might have thin skin in certain situations.”
“I think my job as the chair of the APPG is for businesses to share with me the risks as they see them so we can make sure Brexit delivers for them.”
“The country voted for Brexit, so our job is to find a way of delivering that in a way that meets the needs of business.”
