EU is good for Britain

Sir - Today's start of the second reading of the Bill to ratify the EU Reform Treaty opens a debate that will highlight Britain's relationship with Europe. The business community should not be silent.

Thousands of British companies do business with the rest of Europe. Over half of our trade is with the continent. Many British businesses have benefited from the free movement of labour.

Following enlargement, the single market is now the largest in the world. Britain's attractiveness as a place to do business is multiplied by its access to this market. Our business environment and economy benefit enormously from our position in the EU.

But, as business leaders, we believe that this instinctive pro-Europe approach should be complemented by a drive for further economic reform and for an effective single market, entailing a level playing field for all companies. We believe that the optimal approach is constructive engagement.

Sometimes it is necessary to be critical of what the EU says and does. But this should be done in the context of overall support for Britain enjoying a positive relationship with the EU.

Roland Rudd, Chairman, Business for New Europe, London EC2

Signing in a personal capacity:
Lord Browne (Managing Partner [Europe] of Riverstone Holdings)
Roger Carr (Chairman, Centrica)
Mervyn Davies (Chairman, Standard Chartered)
Niall FitzGerald (Chairman, Reuters)
Paul Skinner (Chairman, Rio Tinto)
Sir Martin Sorrell (Chief Executive, WPP)
Peter Sutherland (Chairman, BP)
Willie Walsh (Chief Executive Officer, British Airways)
Bob Wigley (Chairman - Europe, Middle East & Africa, Merrill Lynch)
Lord Aldington (Chairman, Deutsche Bank AG London)
Lord Brittan (Vice-Chairman, UBS)
Alberto Calderon (Group Executive and Chief Commercial Officer, BHP Billiton)
Russell Chambers (Chief Executive - UK and Ireland, Credit Suisse)
Sir Ronald Cohen (Chairman, Bridge Ventures and Co-Founder, Apax Partners)
Guy Dawson (Founding Partner, Tricorn Partners)
Vernon Ellis (Senior Adviser, Accenture)
Richard Gnodde (Co-Chief Executive Officer, Goldman Sachs International)
Sir Philip Hampton (Chairman, Sainsbury)
Stephen Hester (Chief Executive, British Land)
Lady Barbara Judge (Chairman, UKAEA)
Paul Marshall (Chairman, Marshall Wace Asset)
Andrew Moss (Chief Executive, Aviva)
Dominic Murphy (Partner, Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co Ltd)
Vijay Patel (Chief Executive, Waymade Healthcare)
Stuart Popham (Senior Partner, Clifford Chance)
Kieran Poynter (Chairman, PricewaterhouseCoopers)
Sir Michael Rake (Chairman, BT Group)
Sir Nigel Rudd (Chairman, BAA)
Bryan Sanderson (Chairman, Northern Rock)
Lord Simon (Deputy Chairman, Unilever)
Bill Thomas (President - Europe, Middle East & Africa, EDS)
Rosemary Thorne (Non-Executive Director Abbey National)
Philippe Varin (Chief Executive, Corus)
Bill Winters (Co-Chief Executive, JP Morgan)