Overseas takeovers continue with acquisition of Arriva
This week's news that German state-owned train company Deutsche Bahn has launched a takeover bid for UK transport group Arriva is just one more blow for the UK business arena. Slowly but surely we have seen many of the UK's more prominent companies taken over by overseas competitors with electricity and water markets particularly susceptible to overseas takeovers. We even have the rail network, nuclear power and a host of other utility companies in the UK now under the control of overseas parent groups who may not have the UK consumer's best interests at heart.
As we approach the next general election, the Labour Party has been particularly vocal regarding the protection of UK companies from overseas takeovers but at this moment in time talk is cheap. This government has had 13 years to protect UK companies and ultimately has failed to offer any increase in protection even jumping into bed with French company EDF to map out the UK nuclear power strategy for the future. So why are UK companies so attractive to their overseas counterparts?
The UK stock market is one of the leading investment arenas in the world operating on a fundamental free-market basis which allows the takeover of overseas companies by UK operations and vice versa. It is this free-market policy which has made the UK market so strong but it is also this free-market policy which has allowed many state-owned overseas companies to pick off the best of the UK.
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