Yahoo News US firms tell Theresa May that 'bad Brexit' could be disastrous and put Jeremy Corbyn in power
US companies have warned Theresa May that a “bad Brexit” would be a disaster for the UK and could mean that Jeremy Corbyn becomes prime minister.
Steve Schwarzman, the chief executive of Blackstone, told Mrs May that his company was a “believer” in the UK but he was worried about “how bad can things get”.
The Prime Minister had used her address to the Bloomberg Business Forum in New York to highlight the upsides of Brexit, telling 200 business leaders that Britain will slash corporation tax after leaving the European Union.
But in a question and answer session following the speech, Mr Schwarzman said he was concerned about the type of deal Mrs May will negotiate.
He said: “Things could really go off with a bad Brexit and also a change of government. The things that we really worry about is how bad can things get?
“We believe in the good thing. But in terms of just thinking about it from a risk management perspective it's a little daunting for those of us on the outside.”
Last week Blackstone, a major US private equity company, bought 5,200 properties under railway bridge arches from Network Rail for £1.5billion.
Mrs May told the Blackstone chief that she believed the UK “can get a good deal” but warned that there are “several weeks of intense work to be done in order to get to that point”.
She said: "I absolutely appreciate and understand from that – you’re making decisions and looking ahead to what the future holds.
"And at the moment there is that uncertainty about what the future will hold in terms of Brexit. First of all, just if I can say this again, we believe that we will and can get a good deal.
"And that’s because it’s not just about the UK, it’s about the EU as well, an I think that continued trading relationship is going to be good for both sides.
“But there are several weeks of intense work to be done in order to get to that point."
Ginni Rometty, the chief executive of IBM, also asked Mrs May that as "one of your largest employers what would you do in our shoes to be planning right now? What would you do now to balance that risk?"
Mrs May replied: "We’re at the point of the negotiations where we’ve got a few weeks to go. We don’t know where the negotiations will end. I’m confident about getting a deal.
"But we have to make sure we’re prepared for any eventuality. And of course as Government we’re preparing for a deal and we’re preparing for no deal."
In her speech in New York Mrs May also said she wanted to reform World Trade Organisation rules so that “they remained relevant by keeping pace with the changing nature of trade and technology”.
