Gordon Brown moves to protect UK businesses from takeover
Gordon Brown will on Monday release his Labour Party manifesto which will include a pledge to protect UK businesses from foreign takeover, after the Cadbury and Kraft Foods debacle. Despite the fact that a similar move was rejected by Lord Mandelson earlier this year it seems as though the government is looking to tap into UK voter concerns about UK businesses falling prey to foreign investors.
Under current takeover laws all that is required for a deal to be completed is a simple majority vote from shareholders. Under the UK government's proposals companies which have strong roots in the UK and infrastructure operations will require a two thirds majority before any deal could be finalised. It is not clear how the UK government would actually implement these changes and there is a concern this may be just pandering to voter concerns in the run-up to election. It will be interesting to see the details all the proposals on Monday as they could have major implications for the UK investment market.
Business, economy and taxation are three of the major areas of discussion amongst UK voters at the moment and each party will be looking to gain the trust and the backing of the UK public on these issues.
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