Boris Johnson Hosts Business Leaders’ Dinner Amid U.K. Investment Push

(Bloomberg) --

Prime Minister Boris Johnson will host a dinner Monday with 20 of the world’s most powerful executives ahead of a summit designed to boost investment into the U.K.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. Chief Executive Officer Jamie Dimon and Bill Gates will be among the guests, according to the Daily Telegraph. Stephen Schwarzman, co-founder of private equity firm Blackstone Inc., Barclays Plc CEO Jes Staley and Banco Santander SA Chairman Ana Botin will also be there, the newspaper reported.

Chancellor of the Exchequer Rishi Sunak will host a separate dinner for other leading business figures on the same evening in the capital’s financial district alongside William Russell, the Lord Mayor of London. More than 200 top business people have been invited to Tuesday’s summit, which is aimed at boosting business investment in Britain.

Johnson’s uneasy relationship with business has taken a battering in recent months as Brexit disrupted companies’ supply chains and Covid shuttered the economy. Firms are also grappling with rising inflation, surging energy costs, and labor shortages.

The investment drive mirrors President Emmanuel Macron’s drive to “Choose France,” a similar bid to attract foreign direct investment.

©2021 Bloomberg L.P.