By Illinois Review
On Thursday Gov. JB Pritzker departs for a 7-day trade mission to the United Kingdom, where he’ll be accompanied by a large team of advisors, education and political and business leaders from across the state, in his latest attempt to boost Illinois’ struggling economy as the unemployment rate remains the 4th worst in the country.
In a statement released by the Governor’s Office, Pritzker referred to himself as the state’s “chief marketing officer.”
“When I first ran for Governor, I promised to be our state’s best Chief Marketing Officer—letting the world know that Illinois is the best place to live, work, and do business.
Over the next several days, I couldn’t be more excited to meet with UK and international leaders—sharing the many virtues of our state, from our talented workforce and world-class manufacturing industry to our booming electric vehicle ecosystem and ambitious clean energy goals.”
In addition to aides and deputy governors tagging along on the trip, Pritzker will also be joined by Illinois House Speaker Chris Welch, D; the president of the University of Illinois Tim Kileen; Nicor Gas CEO Wendell Dallas; ComEd CEO Gil Quiniones; Illinois Manufacturing Association CEO Mark Denzler; Illinois Hotel and Lodging Association CEO Michael Jacobson; Illinois Realtors Association President Michael Gobber and Chicagoland Chamber of Commerce Vice President of Government Relations Brad Tietz and United Airlines Vice President of State and Local Government Dan Lynch.
Pritzker will lead a delegation of 42 people from Illinois representing various industries and businesses who will accompany him on his 7-day trade mission to the United Kingdom.
Pritzker travels overseas with the backdrop of a state struggling economically and Chicago crime continuing to dominate national headlines.
In the last year, three major Chicago businesses have left Illinois, including Citadel, Boeing and Caterpillar, as they seek more pro-business friendly states to set up their new headquarters.
In September, McDonald’s CEO Chris Kempczinski gave a speech at the Economic Club in Chicago where he talked about how the crime in Chicago was hurting their recruiting efforts.
“Everywhere I go, I’m confronted by the same question: ‘What’s going on in Chicago?’ There is a general sense out there that our city is in crisis.”
Kempczinksi went on to say that, “Truth is, it’s more difficult for me to recruit a new employee to McDonald’s to join us in Chicago than it was in the past.”
The delegation is expected to return to Illinois on July 20th.
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