Prime Minister Gordon Brown has pledged he will keep the UK's fiscal support long enough to sustain the economic recovery. In a speech to the Confederation of British Industry, he said the government would be careful not to abandon financial stimulus measures brought in to combat recession. "Choking off the recovery too soon would be fatal" he said. Mr Brown also told business leaders the UK has to be "truly competitive" to succeed in the global economy.

In its annual conference, the CBI called for collaboration to 'bring recovery', saying the search is on for a way out of recession. CBI director general Richard Lambert (PICTURED) insists it is time to re-focus on the contributions made by its members; the UK's vast army of small and medium sized enterprises.

"Financial engineering is yesterday's story," Mr Lambert says, insisting that "what we now need is a more balanced, less risky pathway to growth. The short term returns may be lower, but the long term rewards for management success will be a lot more sustainable and secure." he insists. Lambert's call for closer cooperation involving customers, suppliers, employees, universities, as well as industry and its shareholders, is aimed to mark a divide from a recent past where those invested in business would insist on instant results rather than offering support for managers eager to grow their companies over longer periods of time.

"The increasing focus on short-term shareholder value had a dramatic effect on the driving forces of British capitalism," Mr Lambert says. "Managers focused an increasing proportion of time and effort on their balance sheets, and were criticised if they weren't sufficiently aggressive."