In a letter to the Times newspaper, bosses from big employers including telecoms group BT Group PLC, retailers Marks & Spencer Group PLC and Asda Stores Ltd and oil firm BP PLC joined forces to say that access to the EU’s single market enabled firms to grow and create jobs.
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The Prime Minister admitted the referendum would produce some “strange bedfellows” as he campaigns on the same side as Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn and conceded he was disappointed at London mayor Boris Johnson’s decision to back a “leave” vote.
But across the capital around a dozen of Mr Cameron’s MPs appear ready to refuse the Prime Minister’s lead and line up with Mr Johnson.
Johnson has in the past argued that voting to leave the European Union could put Britain in a stronger position to renegotiate the terms of its membership, a theme he returned to in the Daily Telegraph yesterday.
And today Mr Cameron saw lesser support from big businesses for his bid to keep the United Kingdom tied to Brussels than it is believed Downing Street had initially hoped for.
David Cameron said he had “great respect” for the London Mayor and that he had a “very strong future in British politics” but added “on this issue I think he has got it wrong”.
The BBC’s business editor added that there were some notable absences from the letter- such as bosses of FTSE 100 firms Tesco, RBS and Barclays. Writing ahead of a membership referendum on June 23, the retired military chiefs said the European Union helped protect the country against threats from Islamic State jihadists and Russian Federation.
Mr Cameron will hit the campaign trail later to push the case for staying in the European Union during a visit to a business.
But Northern Ireland Secretary Theresa Villiers, one of five full Cabinet ministers backing Brexit, later cited a “long list of businesses” that have said they will continue to invest in Britain even if voters decide to leave the EU.
The government Tuesday also said ministerial special advisers-civil servants who also have party political commitments-may support the leave campaign but only in their own time and outside office hours, and must notify the government in advance.
Experts also pointed out that smaller businesses were less pro-EU than their larger counterparts.
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“Our preference as a business is, of course, that the United Kingdom stays within Europe – it makes the most sense for jobs, trade and costs”, said Nissan chairman and CEO Carlos Ghosn.
