Business for Britain
Business for Britain was founded by Matthew Elliott in 2013 in the wake of David Cameron’s "Bloomberg speech" in which he committed to seeking a renegotiation of the UK’s relationship with the EU followed by an In/Out referendum. BfB was co-chaired by Alan Halsall and John Mills and supported by other influential figures like Peter Cruddas, Daniel Hodson and Jon Moynihan. It had several aims: to demonstrate that the business community was divided on the question of European integration (countering the narrative of the blindly pro-EU CBI); to support attempts to get parliamentary approval for an EU Referendum Bill; and to bring together business leaders who supported a referendum and a fundamental change in the UK’s relationship with the EU.
Significantly, BfB worked to outline how Britain could prosper outside the EU if reform was not possible, culminating in the publication of the 1,000-page Change, or Go report, published in 2015. The Editorial Board for this magnum opus was headed up by Jon Moynihan, and the research and analysis was largely done by William Norton, Oliver Lewis and Lee Rotherham, all of whom went on to have key roles in Vote Leave. Once it became clear that reform on the scale required was not going to be achieved by David Cameron, those running Business for Britain established the Vote Leave campaign in advance of the 2016 referendum. Another notable Business for Britain alumni includes Georgiana Bristol – who worked with Matthew Elliott at NOtoAV, went to be the Development Director at Vote Leave and now works with us at BrexitCentral – and Julie Moody, who was Business for Britain’s Regional Director during the referendum campaign. The 50 Groups Behind Brexit, Jonathan Isaby & Matthew Elliott
People
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- Matthew Elliott
- Alan Halsall
- John Mills
- Peter Cruddas
- Daniel Hodson
- Jon Moynihan
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- William Norton
- Oliver Lewis
- Lee Rotherham
- Georgiana Bristol
- Julie Moody
