South West chamber of commerce Business West has appointed a new chair.
Colin Skellett is the chief executive of the YTL UK Group of companies, which includes Brabazon New Town and the Arena complex at Filton, near Bristol; Wessex Water; YTL’s UK hotels; GENeco; and a number of retail businesses.
He was awarded an OBE for services to business and WaterAid in the 2012 Queen’s Birthday Honours and has honorary doctorates in engineering from the Universities of the West of England (UWE) and Bristol.
He said: “Business West has a great track record of working in partnership to deliver real change to the benefit of this region.
“We are a powerful voice - if you look at the number of members and area we cover, we are one of the most powerful Chambers in the country. Levelling up, climate change and regeneration are all areas where we can make a real difference.
“We also need to identify the big new opportunities such as hydrogen or low carbon technologies. Business is the engine that drives economic growth, and we have a key part to play.”
Business West has urged the Government to takes action to support businesses by showing it has plans to aid economic recovery.
On Tuesday (July 20), the organisation called for more assistance for companies across the region as inflation hit a new record high of 9.4%. Costs are set to increase even further in the autumn, with energy bills expected to skyrocket in October.
"Businesses and households alike are facing unprecedented cost pressures," said Business West managing director Phil Smith.
“The autumn budget will be an opportunity for the new Prime Minister and Chancellor to put in place a plan to help stabilise the economy so businesses can weather the storm.”
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