Published: December 22, 2025 at 3:20 pm
Investment Minister Lord Jason Stockwood says the UK needs to believe in itself more.
Lord Stockwood stepped down from his day-to-day involvement as co-owner and vice-chair at Grimsby Town FC in September after succeeding Poppy Gustafsson as UK Investment Minister.
He was given a peerage, joining the House of Lords, in order to take up the role and is also an experienced leader in technology businesses, holding senior roles at lastminute.com, match.com, Skyscanner, Travelocity, and Simply Business.
Reflecting on his first few months in the role, the 55-year-old said Britain has spent much of the last decade talking itself down – and it needs to stop.
“The dominant story is one of decline: weak growth, stagnant productivity, brittle public services and a politics that seems permanently stuck,” he wrote.
“Some of that story is deserved. But not all of it. And when pessimism hardens into orthodoxy, it starts to shape outcomes.”
He added: “Sentiment, trust and momentum matter. Markets respond not just to policy, but to how credible and confident the story around that policy feels.
“This matters for the UK because, relative to other advanced economies, the fundamentals are stronger than the mood music suggests.”