Nick Clegg’s company ‘right to buy’ plan welcomed by business

By PETER RANSCOMBE
Published on 05/07/2012 00:00

BUSINESS leaders yesterday welcomed steps taken by Deputy Prime Minister Nick Clegg to make it easier for employees to buy a company from their boss.

Clegg told a summit at the Institute of Chartered Accountants of England & Wales that he would implement recommendations put forward by government adviser Graeme Nuttall in his employee-ownership report.

The coalition will launch an independent professional body called the “Institute for Employee Ownership” to offer information and advice.

“Do-it-yourself” packs covering legal, tax and other regulatory considerations will also be produced for workers.

Clegg, who has called for the creation of a “John Lewis economy”, will launch a consultation on how a “right to request” employee ownership might be put into practice. He said: “Employee-owned firms have lower levels of absenteeism, higher productivity and growth rates and smaller gaps between the pay at the top and ordinary workers.”

David Watt, executive director of the Institute of Directors in Scotland, said: “Employee ownership can be extremely positive for the productivity and morale of a business, so the Nuttall Review’s exploration of how to deliver that is very welcome.

“Helping people to have a stake in the company they work for is a great aim, and more information and support can only be a good thing.

“Our aim as a nation should be to have a more participatory, more accountable and as a result more popular model of capitalism. Involving employees more closely in the future of the businesses for which they work is a great way to do that.”

News of the measures comes after Co-operative Development Scotland last month appointed ten “ambassadors” to promote the staff-ownership model.