Our guest on this edition of the Fair & Square podcast is James Ashton , Chief Executive of The Quoted Companies Alliance, which champions the UK’s 1,000 plus small and mid-sized publicly traded businesses and the firms that advise them.

James is a former senior business journalist and editor, and author of several books, including most recently The Everything Blueprint – a fascinating insight into how British microchip designer Arm became a global gamechanger in its market.

But it was primarily as head of the QCA that James spoke with our podcast host Adam Batstone and told him that the storytelling craft he learned as a journalist was a useful tool in his role campaigning on behalf of the UK’s growth companies.

‘I think good trade bodies have to be able to tell stories … we have to be talking to the outside world, talking to the media, to policy makers and government,’ he said.

Founded more than 30 years ago, the QCA was a key voice in helping establish the Alternative Investment Market – London’s junior stock market - which remains home to many of its members although others range from constituents of the Aquis market to the FTSE 250.

Small and mid-sized publicly traded companies represent 91% of the quoted sector, employ 2.1 million people and contribute more than £25 billion in annual taxation.

James said common themes among members were that they believed in the public markets and wanted them to work as well as they possibly could.

‘Generally what I hear from members is the cost and complexity is a little bit more than it should be, we want more liquidity and there is hope there is a better narrative that we can champion our entrepreneurs that have gone public.’

The QCA takes its messages to government, regulators and the media, through frequent policy submissions – on average one a fortnight - and original research – such as a recent study into the soaring cost of audit.

James said he welcomed the recent publication of the Financial Conduct Authority’s final Listing Rules designed to boost growth and innovation on UK stock markets which have been threatened by the growth of private money alternatives for businesses in the form of private equity/venture capital.

‘We can’t have the whole of the UK economy operating in private hands …. There is so much value in operating in front of the veil not behind the veil … that’s good for staff, for stakeholders for the wider economy and for society…so you can see how these companies are operating.’

However, James added that the ‘thicket’ of rules and regulations that listed businesses faced did need to be reformed. The QCA’s own research into annual reports found they were growing by about 6,000 words a year and were now longer than a Jane Austen novel!