| The Business Roundtable urges Gilmore Commission to promote partnerships In testimony given recently at a hearing in California of the Gilmore Commission, C. Michael Armstrong, chairman of the Business Roundtable Security Task Force, called for the US government to involve the private sector more in Homeland security efforts and to develop a partnership between businesses and governments of all levels. "The private sector should be - and wants to be - part of a nationally coordinated team that responds quickly to an attack or disaster with federal, state and local governments," said Armstrong, chairman of Comcast Corporation. "We believe that the government cannot face these challenges alone, because more than 85 percent of the critical infrastructure in the country - the power grid, financial services, information services, railroads, airlines and others - is controlled by the private sector, not the government." Armstrong testified via satellite before the Advisory Panel to Assess Domestic Response Capabilities for Terrorism Involving Weapons of Mass Destruction, which is led by former Virginia Governor James S. Gilmore, III. Since the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and Pentagon nearly two years ago, the Business Roundtable has been working with the federal government to coordinate improved security and responses to terrorist attacks. Armstrong noted in his testimony that progress is being made in coordinating disaster response and recovery among businesses and governments of all levels, but added that more needs to be done to build on the foundation of cooperation and partnership. "We believe that the business community must be included in the planning stages for disaster response and recovery, but have found that the private sector is not yet adequately integrated in planning and policy activities," Armstrong said. In his testimony, Armstrong urged the Gilmore Commission to include recommendations in its next report to Congress that: * Encourage more robust and targeted private sector roles in disaster response and recovery at all levels of government. This should include exploring partnerships between business groups with state and local governments through organizations such as the National Governors' Association and the National Emergency Managers Association. * Integrate the Business Roundtable’s CEO COM LINK into the national response and recovery system, connect it with state and local officials, and expand it to include on-going communications during a crisis. * Endorse corporate governance reforms that bring security plans and procedures under the oversight of corporate boards. A copy of Armstrong's testimony to the Gilmore Commission can be found on www.brt.org
•Date:
5th September 2003 • Region: N.America •Type:
Article •Topic: Terrorism
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