Speaking at the inaugural Sir Paul Getty KBE Charity Lecture, hosted
by CAF, Jones made the point that if business is restrained from creating
wealth through over-regulation, then there will be less wealth available
to put back into society. In this respect he said: “I think we’ve
got every right in the world to say [to law makers], ‘Will you create
an environment in which we can get on and create some wealth?’ because
we are, after all, the only people in our society who actually build schools
and hospitals and airports and pay for armies and nurses and teachers,
because we’re the only ones who create wealth.”
Referring to business giving back to society, he said
that if there were to be a significant increase in charitable giving,
the right conditions needed to be in place. “So we must end the
constant drift towards a nanny state. If we create a mindset of ‘nanny
knows best’, then society’s and business’ attitude will
be to ‘let nanny do it’... We’re not there yet, but
we’re at five to midnight.”
Beyond this, he said that charities knew they had to reach out to business,
but they often don’t approach business in the right way, or they
do not speak to the right person. “Or sometimes they think they
know best when they don’t. Don’t go and approach a company
for a big donation on the day they declare a profit warning. Don’t
go and think you know the man because you play golf with him and he turns
out to be the one person in the organisation with no clout. Charities
need to do their homework too if they’re going to maximise the connection
with business large or small.”
Referring to environmental issues, he made the point that
businesses did need to be more green, but in a competitive global market
where “India wants your lunch and China wants your dinner”
it was necessary to have global policies in place for green industry in
order for British business to be able to compete.
He also said that most businesses do have positive CSR
policies in place but, “you never read about the 99.9% of businesses
that every day in every way are corporately socially responsible.”
Having a good CSR policy he said was a win/win, because it allowed companies
to attract talent (who want to work for a socially responsible employer)
and it made people more willing to buy a company's products.
He also lauded charities as being skilled in what they
do, often being much better at it than others: “not always, of course.
They’re human just like you and me. But they’re so much better
at it in delivery as well, because they’ve been doing it for a long,
long time. Now if they come to the party with all those assets on the
Balance Sheet, why doesn’t government use them more in delivering
to a public sector that needs reform?”
He concluded his speech by saying: “if we build
a socially inclusive wealth creative society, not frightened of its own
shadow and equipped as this fabulous nation can be, really to take on
the world in an era of tolerant, liberal, democratic capitalism, then
business doesn’t make a difference - business makes the difference.”
To read the full text of the speech, in PDF format, visit
www.cafonline.org/events/lecture/Sir%20Digby%20Jones%27%20Lecture.pdf
