British businesses must pay their taxes and play a central role in the societies they operate in as public spending falls, the boss of Waitrose has said.
Speaking as he prepared to hand over the chairmanship of the Business in the Community (BITC) charity to Barclays chief executive Antony Jenkins, Mark Price said: “No matter who wins the election, the Government will be facing a huge deficit to get down.
“In the light of that, business has a responsibility to the societies in which it operates to step up to the mark and be responsible, sustainable and long term.”
Companies had a duty to make profits so they can pay their taxes, create employment and engage in society for the long term, he added.
His handover takes place tonight at a summit that will be attended by more than 400 senior executives who will be addressed by Prince Charles, president of the BITC.
Jenkins said: “Businesses don’t operate in isolation — we have customers and staff, what we do and how we do it has a huge impact on the society in which we live and work.”
