81 British Indian business leaders, representing companies which range from multi-million pound businesses to SMEs and employ thousands of people across the UK, have signed an open letter in support of the UK’s continued membership of the European Union.
The companies run by the business leaders operate across the country in a range of sectors including: financial and legal services, hospitality, consultancy, real estate, care services, retail, media, technology, healthcare, pharmaceuticals, construction and manufacturing.
The signatories believe that the UK’s membership of the European Union helps to strengthen the British economy and that a vote to leave would create significant uncertainty and put jobs and business investment at risk.
On the other hand, Priti Patel, UK's employment Minister and PM Cameron's Indian Diaspora Champion, who is in favour of the Leave campaign, said David Cameron and other leading pro-Europeans do not care about the effects of mass migration on working families because they are so rich, according to a cabinet minister. This comes after David Cameron suggested high immigration is a price worth paying for the economic benefits of EU memnbership, denying that he is a closet Brexiteer.
In an article in the Daily Telegraph Patel reportedly claimed the “luxury” lifestyles of campaigners who want to stay in the EU mean they are “insulated” from the impact of rising immigration on the daily lives of millions of Britons.
She said it is “shameful” that the Remain campaign leaders fail to consider the struggles of families who, unlike them, cannot afford private health care or fee-paying schools.
Although she does not directly name Mr Cameron and George Osborne, she repeatedly makes clear she is aiming her criticism at the “leaders” of the Remain campaign, who include the Prime Minister and the Chancellor.
Downing Street reportedly said Ms Patel’s intervention was an attempt to “distract” voters’ attention away from the economic risk of leaving the EU.
Her comments can be witnessed as sign of how the campaign is becoming increasingly personal.
Ms Patel, is a daughter of Indian Gujaratis who came to Britain in the 1970s.
Mr Cameron has hit back, accusing Leave campaigners of offending Muslims by claiming that Turks are criminals and terrorists who will come to the UK if Britain stays in the EU.
“I do find it concerning the way that the Leave campaign are talking about Turkish people in this referendum,” he told Muslim News.
“Many British Muslims will be offended by the way they are trying to frighten people. I think it’s a sign of desperation.” But Ms Patel argues immigration would increase when Turkey, Albania and other countries join the EU.
Speaking about the importance of immigration and its positive effect, Guy Chazan in Financial Times interviewed entrepreneur Raif Kuhirt in Germany, who is a big fan of Chancellor Angela Merkel's open door refugee policy. He said migrant crisis has posed serious threats social services, housing etc, but the sudden influx has also profited Germany's propertied class, after warehouses, hangars, hotels, B&B's have been converted into shelters by municipalities across the country- giving birth a whole new subspecies of entrepreneurs – the shelter managers.
Michael Fallon, who is a known Euroskeptic in his comment piece in The Sunday Telegraph emphasised that for security and prosperity, even Euroskeptics have to vote Remain. David Smith in the Sunday Times wrote “HM Revenue & Customs data shows that recently arrived migrants paid £2.5bn more in taxes in 2013-14 than they received in tax credits and benefits. Part of that money is being used to cut the budget deficit. But it is also as available as anybody else’s taxes to pay for public services...
“Leaving aside the fact that this is also an area of regular misreporting — new jobs and a net increase in employment are not the same thing — that is not the true picture.
“Since January-March 2010, the post-recession low, the number of UK-born workers in employment has risen by 1.1m to 26.25m. That is a record, but so was the proportion aged 16-64 in work last year, at 74.3%. In the six years to the end of the first quarter of this year there was a rise from 70.7% to 74.6% in the UK-born employment rate.
“There was, it should be said, also a net rise of 633,000 people in work from the EU’s new eastern European members, and 309,000 in those from long-standing EU states in western Europe.
“Migrants from eastern Europe overwhelmingly come to work. More than 80% of those of working age are in employment. But this rise occurred alongside, not instead of, a sustained increase in UK-born employment...
“The migrants have come, but the idea they have been taking all or even most of the jobs is a fallacy...”
While London's first Muslim and Asian Mayor Sadiq Khan, from the Labour party and PM Cameron are on the same side of the Remain campaign, forgetting all the differences during the Mayoral campaign time, almost half of Labour voters do not know their party wants to Remain within Europe, raising more questions about Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn's efforts to secure a Remain vote. The party leader has been criticised for going on a holiday this week, while his party colleagues step up the referendum fight. On the other hand, Andrew Bridgen MP for North West Leicestershire has warned that PM Cameron will face leadership challenge even if he wins the EU refrendum. Sir Bill Cash said he is ready to demand David Cameron goes unless he tones down attacks on the Leave side, as a threatened leadership coup became public.
Alok Sharma MP, who is co-ordinating the cross-party campaign group ‘British Indians for IN’, said: “As the Prime Minister’s Infrastructure Envoy to India I speak very regularly with business leaders in the UK and India. Their overwhelming view echoes that of the signatories to this letter, that a vote for the UK to leave the EU will be bad for British businesses, jobs and investment.”
Alok continued: “Brexit will have the double whammy effect of not only hitting UK businesses but also impacting on inward investment. Indian companies have informed me that some decisions on future investments into the UK have been deferred until the outcome of the referendum is known and, if we vote to leave the EU, there is a big risk that Indian companies will think twice before investing in the UK.”
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The full text of the letter is as follows:
“Dear Sir
We represent businesses across many sectors of the British economy and collectively employ thousands of people. We believe that the UK’s membership of the European Union helps to strengthen the British economy and a vote to leave the EU will undoubtedly create significant uncertainty and put jobs and business investment at risk.
Some of those who want Britain to leave the EU suggest that doing so will somehow help to increase our trade with high growth economies like that of India. We disagree with this assessment. Britain is a stronger economic partner with countries like India because we are part of the European Union. In our experience one of the key reasons that Britain is an attractive destination for inward overseas investment is because we are seen as a gateway to the European Single market of 500 million people.
We will be voting for Britain to remain in the European Union and urge all voters to do the same.
Yours faithfully,
Mr Sumit Agarwal, Founder & Managing Partner, DNS Associates Ltd, Mr Vivek Agarwal, Founder & Chief Executive Officer, Strand of Silk Ltd, Mr JP Agrawal, Managing Director and Founder, Derivatives Value Advisors, Mr Rajesh Agrawal, Founder & Chairman, RationalFX, Mr Sats Ahluwalia, Group Managing Director, Mulberry Care Group, Mrs Pavan Ahluwalia, Chief Executive Officer, Pavan Henna Artist Limited, Mr Neeraj Arora, Executive Vice President and Head of International Business, Sony Entertainment Television (supporting in a personal capacity)
Mr Suneel Bakhshi, Chief Executive Officer, LCH (supporting in a personal capacity), Mr Amit Bhatia, Chairman, Hope Construction Materials, Mr Raj Bhatt, Vice Chairman & Chief Executive Officer, Elara Capital PLC, Lord Karan Bilimoria CBE DL, (supporting in a personal capacity), Mr Jigs Chana, Director, Cameo Properties Development Ltd, Mr Prem Chander, Chief Executive Officer, London Energy Trading Ltd, Mr Nitin Dahad, Founder, Techspark Limited, Mr Pratik Dattani, Director – UK, Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry, Mr Sudhir Dhanani, Director, Clearconsult Management Limited, Mr Uday Dholakia OBE, Senior Partner, Global Consulting UK Ltd, Ms Rupa Ganatra, Founding Partner, Millennial 20/20 Ltd, Mr Ravi Gidar, Director, Gold Care Homes, Mr Ram Gidoomal CBE, Chairman, Dulas Ltd, Mr Harminder Gill, Managing Director, Gillcrest Homes, Mr, Vijay Goel, Partner, Singhania & Co, Mr Raj Gupta, Director, Heathfield House Nursing Homes Ltd, Mr Arif Hussein, Director, Homebound UK Ltd (t/a Brockley Consulting), Mr Jayesh Jotangia, Barrister at 33 Bedford Row, Mr Surjit Jutla, Director, Euro-Link Property Management Services Ltd, Miss Bhavini Kalaria, Managing Director, The London Law Practice Ltd, Dr Sanjeev Kanoria, Chairman, Advinia Health Care Limited, Dr Mohan Kaul, Vice Chairman, Indo-UK Institute of Health, Mr Sid Khemka, Founder & Chief Executive Officer, Konnect Digital Limited, Ms Mani Kohli, Founder/Designer, Khubsoorat UK Ltd, Mr Saran Kohli, Director, Mani Kohli's UK Ltd, Ms Preema Kohli-Verma, Chief Executive Officer, Preema International Limited, Mr Salil Kumar, Director, Asset India Ltd, Mr Anil Kumar, Chairman, Ransat Group, Mr Manoj Ladwa, Chief Executive, India Inc Ltd, Professor Kartar Lalvani OBE, Chairman, Vitabiotics Ltd, Dr Gurmit Mahay, GP, Poplars Medical Practice, Mr Andeep Mangal, Director, Thapers Chartered Accountants, Mr Tony Matharu, Managing Director, Grange Hotels (supporting in a personal capacity), Mr Sukhdev Mattu, Chief Executive Officer, Chartwell Private Hospital, Dr Ravi Mehrotra CBE, Executive Chairman, Foresight Ltd, Mr Rahul Mehta, Founder, ViCos Ltd, Mr Ketan Mehta, Managing Director, Necessity Supplies Ltd, Mr Vish Mehta, Group Director, MiCasa Group, Mr Anirudh Misra, Director, International Metallurgical Resources Ltd, Mr Jagdish Nagrecha, Director, Crane International Limited, Mr Rajay Naik, Chief Executive Officer - Europe, Keypath Education, Mr Manoj Nair, Founder and Chief Executive Officer, Redgirraffe.com, Mr Ashok Rabheru CVO DL, Chairman, Genisys Group, Mr Ravi Pandey, Managing Director, Rolta UK Ltd, Ms Chanda Pandya, Brand Director, Rossana UK Ltd, Ms Parita Patel, Director, Uniflora Limited, Mr Guppy Patel, Director, Xoocafe Limited, Mr Ashok Patel, Director, TNV Construction Ltd, Mr Hiren Patel, Project Architect, Black Elephant ID Studio Ltd, Mr Vikkas Puri, Director, Sunrise Developers Limited, Mr Thembalath Ramachandran, Chairman & Managing Director, Bristol Laboratories Ltd, Mr Arun Raman, Chief Executive Officer, Helm Natural Resources Ltd, Lord Diljit Rana MBE, Managing Director, Andras House Ltd, Mr Rami Ranger CBE, Chairman, Sunmark Ltd, Mr Yoganathan Ratheesan, Chairman & Chief Executive Officer, Lebara Group, Mr Abhishek Sachdev, Managing Director, Vedanta Hedging Limited, Mr Paul Sagoo, Founder, Asian Awards Ltd, Mr Girish Sanger, Director, Mastcraft Ltd, Mr Nimesh Sanghrajka, Director, Mantra Consultancy & Capital Limited, Mr Gurvinder Sethi, Director, Flavors of India Ltd, Mr Pravin Shah, Director, Levershire Limited, Mr Shamir Shah, Director, Icone-International Ltd, Mr Pradip Sharma, Pradicorp UK Ltd, Ms Kavita Sharma, Chief Executive, Indo British Business Forum, Mr Anil Sharma, Chief Executive Officer, Kinedexe UK Ltd, Ms Sangeeta Sidhu-Robb, Chief Executive Officer & Founder, Nosh Detox Delivery Ltd, Mr Amarjit Singh, Chief Executive Officer, India Business Consultancy Limited (t/a The India Business Group), Mr Ajaya Sodha, Director, Arma Properties UK Ltd, Mr Jay Tahasildar, Director, Mercurius IT Limited, Mr Ranjit Thaker, Director, Thaker Acquisitions Ltd, Mr Subhash Thakrar, Partner, CBW Partners, Mr Manish Tiwari, Managing Director, Here&Now365 Ltd, Mr Madhava Turumella, Chief Executive Officer, Cove Venture Ltd, Mr Danesh Varma, Director, Global Preservation Strategies Limited.”
