Unilever departing is bad news for British business and a clear sign Theresa May needs to deliver the reforms that provide UK businesses like GKN and Unilever with more cover says GMB. Contributor Eamon O’Hearn, National Officer – GMB.

GMB, Britain’s general union, says Unilever has fled Britain because the Government won’t protect them from hostile takeovers. The company, which makes Dove soap, Ben & Jerry’s ice cream and Marmite, has confirmed it will abandon its dual British/Dutch structure in favour of a single headquarters in Rotterdam. Last year the company successfully fought off a bid £115 billion takeover bid by Kraft Heinz.

The Government has not done enough to reassure companies like Unilever that Britain is willing to protect them from hostile takeovers. Eamon O’Hearn, GMB National Officer, said: “This looks like a clear case of Unilever escaping to the Netherlands where they’ll have better protection from hostile takeovers.

“It’s bad news for British business and a clear sign Theresa May needs to deliver the reforms that provide UK businesses like GKN and Unilever with more cover. This would be an important step in providing UK businesses with greater security ahead of the likely turbulence coming from Brexit. It would be a chance to widen the scope of stakeholders to include employees and pension funds, who had to be taken into consideration whenever a hostile takeover was launched. These new measures would truly be the UK taking back control.”