UK-France Business Forum 1st Edition
Background
The bilateral Chambers of Commerce – the French Chamber of Commerce of Great Britain and the Franco-British Chamber of Commerce and Industry – launched the new UK-France Business Forum in Paris on Wednesday 6th July. The Business Forum is chaired by the Presidents of the bilateral chambers, Fabienne Viala and Thierry Drilhon.
The Forum is built on a joint commitment by the bilateral chambers and other partners to strengthen business relationships and increase the potential for more business between France and the UK. It formally recognises the strength of the economic relationship between the UK and France and aims to enhance business-to-business dialogue and foster commercial opportunities on both sides of the Channel.
28 business leaders from 25 major French and UK companies attended the Forum launch. Alongside business leaders, the Business Forum included representation by Emmanuel Massé, Economic Counsellor at the French Embassy in London, Géraldine Filippi from Business France, as well as Sean McGuire from the Confederation of British Industry (CBI) and Geoffroy Roux de Bézieux and other colleagues from the Mouvement des Entreprises de France (MEDEF).
Next Steps
The UK-France Business Forum will meet on a bi-annual basis, alternating between Paris and London. The aim is to reconvene the next edition of the Forum before the end of 2022. The Forum discussions concluded that working groups should be established to increase collaboration and develop concrete proposals for joint action in advance of the next meeting.
There are three pillars, with dedicated leads:
- Mobility: Rupert Reece, Managing Partner at Gide Loyrette Nouel LLP UK
- Clean transition and the environment: Alice Williams, Strategy Development and Execution at Schneider Electric
- Technology and innovation: Raph Crouan, President of La French Tech London
Pillar leads, in collaboration with the bilateral Chambers of Commerce and supported by the British Embassy in Paris, will organise virtual meetings between September and November 2022 to discuss next steps for the sub-groups.
Members will be expected to report back to the next edition of the Business Forum with pragmatic ideas, concrete proposals and key success indicators for discussion in December 2022.