Aims of Industry

Aims of Industry was founded in 1942 as an independent free enterprise corporate lobby group by business leaders in industry. It came into existence to combat nationalisation of key British industries such as sugar, iron and steel. It campaigned against the creation of the National Health Service in 1945. It was known as Aims for Freedom and Enterprise from 1975-78 and Aims from 1978-80.

Although not directly involved in party politics, Aims of Industry is closely linked to the Conservative Party and the Freedom Association.

It makes an annual "National Free Enterprise Award", recipients of which have included F.A. Hayek, Margaret Thatcher and John Blundell.

Aims' Objectives

According to the history of Aims published by the organisation in 1982 there objectives were:

• To defend free enterprise and freedom
• To create a public belief in free enterprise so that the government can take the right decisions and companies can achieve their objectives.
• To oppose, and wherever possible reduce, unnecessary government intervention by state ownership, control or excessive bureaucracy.^[1]

In its early years Aims was at the forefront of corporate campaigning against democratic decision making in Britain. When the Conservative Party split over Europe in the 1980s and 90s, some of Aims key leaders took the 'Eurosceptic' side, rendering them marginal in transnational business circles - so much so that the 'pro-european' lobby group Britain in Europe backed by Transnational business carried a profile of them:

In March 1998 Aims of Industry launched a Campaign against the European Single Currency. Two Council members of Aims of Industry, Sir Nigel Mobbs and Jamie Borwick (Sponsor/Patron, Bruges Group, since 1989) were National Council members of Business for Sterling.^[2]

Personnel

• Lord Michael Forsyth of Drumlean, president (former Conservative Secretary of State for Scotland, 1995-97)
• Sir Nigel Mobbs, Chairman
• Mike Fisher, Trustee
• Bertie Bridges Webb Director from 1957-1970
• John Lyle Chairman in 1982, fo the Surgar corporation Tate and Lyle

Its former Director and Consultant was Michael Ivens (Joint Founder and Vice-President, Freedom Association, 1975-2001).

Aims of Industry claims 800 members, with six full-time members of staff.^[3]

Funding

Past funders are thought to have included Balfour Beatty [4] and Slough Estates [5]. British American Tobacco supported Aims from 1949 until 1991 [6], [7].

Related

• Economic League

Aims of Industry publications

1940s-1950s

• Lord Perry, Industry in Reconstruction, Aims of Industry, 1943.
• Sir Roland Evans Industry: The Key to National Security Aims of Industry, March 1944.

1960s-1970s

• Aims of Industry 30 years of Aims of Industry London: Aims of Industry 1972. ISBN: 090003565X
• Alan Walters Money and Inflation Aims of Industry, undated, but around 1974.

1980s

• Michael Forsyth MP Barriers to Privatisation, Aims of Industry, 1984.
• Hubert Starley 40 Years Fighting for Free Enterprise: A Personal History of Aims of Industry, Aims of Industry.

References

• ^ Hubert Starley 40 Years Fighting for Free Enterprise: A Personal History of Aims of Industry, Aims of Industry.

• ^ Aims of Industry profile, Britain in Europe website, accessed January 2004. No longer online, but available via the Internet Archive

• Balfour Beatty profile, Corporate Watch, Winter 1996

• Tories' business backers: are they ethical?, Friends of the Earth press release, 4 June 2001
• Chris Marsden, "British mercenaries planned assassination of Kurdish leader Abdullah Ocalan", Sunday Times, 24 August 1999.
• Obituary: 'Michael Ivens: Champion of the libertarian right and business freedom', Roger Cowe, Wednesday November 21, 2001 The Guardian [8]

Resources

• Labour Research Department Who is Behind Them?, May 1953.