Originally published at The Telegraph
At times over the last few weeks, many business leaders will have felt like Sisyphus, with one event after another knocking them back in swift succession. Still reeling from the referendum result – which, for good or ill, is the biggest economic shake-up in decades – companies soon found that we had an almost entirely new government. At its head, Theresa May made clear that she had been thinking deeply about business, calling for more scrutiny over foreign takeovers in her first few days in No 10.
While CEOs were still digesting these developments, Parliament got in on the act, in the space of a few days launching two of the most scathing attacks on high-profile businessmen I can remember, in the shape of reports on Sports Direct and BHS. While the specific targets of the MPs’ ire may have been Mike Ashley and Sir Philip Green, the reports have tarnished the reputation of business as whole. Business had been slowly trying to rebuild public trust, which was so badly damaged in the financial crash.