Outgoing Balfour Beatty chief executive Leo Quinn has called on Chancellor Rachel Reeves to reverse her abolition of the UK’s non-dom tax status, warning the move has deterred wealthy investors and is limiting funding for major infrastructure projects.
Quinn, who steps down after a decade leading the construction giant, said the decision to end the non-dom regime in April had driven “phenomenal” investment away from Britain, particularly from billionaires and wealthy families who could take a long-term view on projects.
“London’s the best city on the planet and what we should be doing is attracting all these billionaires and wealthy families here,” Quinn said. “Maybe we’ve gone a little bit too far in what we’ve done around non-doms … and we’ll look to mitigate some of those rules.”
High-profile departures following the policy change include Goldman Sachs banker Richard Gnodde, Aston Villa co-owner Nassef Sawiris and Norwegian shipping magnate John Fredriksen.
Quinn argued that the government should be doing more to encourage overseas businesspeople to invest in UK infrastructure, warning that Britain was “missing out” on opportunities to secure patient capital.
His comments come amid figures showing foreign direct investment into the UK fell to its lowest level since records began in 2008. Department for Business and Trade data shows inbound projects fell 12% in 2023 to 1,375, despite efforts to attract overseas capital.
Balfour Beatty’s latest trading update reported an 18% rise in half-year profits to £132m, helped by faster government approvals for infrastructure projects. Current work includes the £833m Net Zero Teesside carbon capture scheme and the Sizewell C nuclear plant, where it will deliver a third of the main civil engineering works.
A Treasury spokesperson said the UK was attracting “record investment” and giving investors “direction and clarity on our priorities for major projects”.