British business leaders to call for govt help

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LONDON, Nov 24 (AFP): British business leaders will call for urgent government help today as the country teeters on the brink of its first recession in over 15 years as a result of the global credit crunch.
The annual conference of the Confederation of British Industry (CBI), Britain's biggest employers' body, is likely to be dominated by the government's announcement of an economic stimulus package the same day.
CBI Director-General Richard Lambert said the economy needed "action" and called on Prime Minister Gordon Brown to protect jobs by focusing tax cuts on businesses and not individuals.
"What we need is action in the economy," Lambert told newmen.
"The reason we've focused the way we have (on securing jobs) ... is in the end, consumer confidence and job security absolutely go hand-in-hand."
Finance minister Alistair Darling is expected to announce a boost in public spending, help for small businesses and more targeted tax cuts when he unveils his preliminary budget-pre-budget report-later Monday.