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Richard Gnodde and Michael Sherwood, the London-based co-CEOs of Goldman Sachs Group Inc.’s international division, HSBC’s Stuart Gulliver and Bill Winters of Standard Chartered Plc signed a letter to the Times newspaper saying that staying in the bloc would be best for the British economy. Barclays Plc and Lloyds Banking Group Plc weren’t represented.
Bankers appeared more eager to back Cameron than representatives of other industries, with only 36 of the U.K.’s 100 biggest companies publicly endorsing the statement that “leaving the EU would deter investment, threaten jobs and put the economy at risk.” Grocery chains J. Sainsbury Plc and Tesco Plc were among those not included.
The publication of the letter Tuesday comes four months to the day until a referendum on so-called Brexit, as Cameron intensified his campaign after making risks to the economy a central plank of his case for remaining in the EU.
“If you’re not certain, surely the best thing to do is back the side that has the security, the safety and the certainty of what we know,” the prime minister told staff at an office in Slough, west of London. “Three million jobs are dependent on our trade with Europe, of course not all those jobs would go - we’d still do trade with Europe - but can we put our hands on our hearts and say all those jobs will be safe if we leave the EU?” [...]
‘Unrestricted Access’
In their letter, the executives said that business needs “unrestricted access to the European market of 500 million people in order to continue to grow, invest and create jobs.”
The signatories, including bosses from Marks and Spencer Group Plc, Vodafone Group Plc and Heathrow Airport Ltd., employ 1.2 million people and represent about 200 companies, the Times said.
“A vote to remain offers the best of both worlds - it secures our place as a powerhouse in the global economy, while remaining in the world’s largest free trade zone,” John Holland-Kaye, the CEO of Heathrow, said in a separate statement on Tuesday.
Winters of Standard Chartered told reporters that while the implications for his company were “not overwhelmingly material one way or another,” it was still the bank’s view that “Britain is best placed in Europe.”
Other finance chiefs to back Cameron were HSBC Chairman Douglas Flint, Adrian Montague, chairman of Aviva Plc, Xavier Rolet of London Stock Exchange Group Plc and Tidjane Thiam of Credit Suisse Group AG.
Voter Choice
Perhaps worried about alienating consumers, pay-television provider Sky Plc joined Tesco and Sainsbury in not endorsing the letter. The referendum is “a matter for the British people,” Sainsbury said in a statement on Monday.
Barclays said in a statement that, while it didn’t sign up to the letter as it’s against the bank’s policy, “on balance we think it is in the interests of our customers and clients” to stay in the EU. [...]