Long-serving Chief Executive of Informa plc, Lord Stephen Carter, is planning to relocate to the United Arab Emirates-a decision that underlines the growing concern by the UK’s leading business leaders about the country’s changing tax environment and its place in the world. According to Exhibition News UK, the move by Carter will add his name to the increasing number of high-profile executives and entrepreneurs shifting their bases to overseas destinations with more favorable business conditions.

As the head of one of Britain’s largest information, events, and publishing companies, Carter has navigated Informa through a period of rapid transformation. Appointed chief executive in 2014, he oversaw the group’s expansion overseas, augmented its digital resources, and rebranded it as a leader in business intelligence and events. Yet, his decision to move his residency abroad suggests the even the most committed corporate figures are feeling the pinch in the increasingly complex UK business landscape.

A Broader Executive Exodus

Carter’s move mirrors a very clear trend amongst business leaders in the UK: a number of executives have chosen to take residence in low-tax havens such as Dubai, Abu Dhabi, and Monaco in recent months. The reasons are varied, but usually revolve around issues of high personal taxation, regulatory encumbrances, and sometimes economic policy uncertainty.

The new fiscal approach of the UK has been principally driven by Chancellor Rachel Reeves and has led to increased debate over potential rises in income and corporate taxes to help reduce budget deficits. For wealthy individuals and executives overseeing international operations, such policies are leading some to reassess where to domicile and conduct business.

“The UK remains a world-class hub for innovation and enterprise,” says Carter in a recent industry conversation, “but as a global executive you have to balance strategic oversight with personal sustainability. The environment for doing business continues to evolve, and we must evolve with it.”

His words reflect the broader sentiment of corporate Britain: admiration for the UK’s heritage of enterprise, but growing anxiety over its trajectory in a world of hyper-mobile talent and capital.

Informa’s Global Transformation

Under the leadership of Mr. Carter, Informa has completed an extraordinary transformation. It successfully transitioned from being a traditional publishing house to a global player in business events, academic publishing, and data-driven intelligence. Properties such as the Arab Health Exhibition, Black Hat Conferences, and Lloyd’s List have variously positioned Informa at the heart of knowledge exchange and industry networking.

During the COVID-19 pandemic, when live events were halted globally, Carter led a decisive drive toward digital engagement, accelerating virtual event platforms and hybrid formats that have since become the industry norm. His strategy preserved not just the market presence of the company but reshaped its revenue model for long-term resilience.

In 2023, Informa reported over £3 billion in annual revenue and a strong return to profitability, cementing Carter’s reputation as one of the UK’s most capable and forward-thinking CEOs.

The Symbolism Behind the Move

While the headquarters of Informa will stay in London, Carter’s relocation to the UAE has symbolic and practical meaning. The UAE has established itself as a global corporate hub with attractive tax conditions, political stability, and world-class infrastructure. Various international companies are expanding their presence in the Middle East, and this move by Carter is very likely to further cement Informa’s position in the region, especially considering that the events portfolio of the company is growing across Dubai and Abu Dhabi.

Yet, to many onlookers, it is also a silent censure on the UK’s economic environment at the moment. With inflation pressures, debates on corporate taxation, and a slowdown in investment inflows, some commentators fear the country’s capacity to retain and attract senior talent could well weaken.

What It Means for UK Business

The loss of influential voices like Lord Stephen Carter raises critical questions for policymakers in the UK: How can Britain retain corporate leaders and international businesses as it has fiscal reforms and social equity?

Unchecked, this “executive drift” could gradually drain London of its status as Europe’s corporate nerve centre. But dealt with imaginatively-through tax incentives, innovation funding, and international cooperation-it might prove instead the moment at which the UK redefines what leadership in a globalized world looks like. For now, Carter’s UAE move is less an exit and more a strategic extension — both for his personal journey and for Informa’s evolving global narrative. It captures the modern CEO’s balancing act: managing growth, globalisation, and governance while navigating personal and economic realities that no longer stop at borders. In many ways, Lord Stephen Carter’s decision reflects not retreat but reinvention — a story of how leaders adapt in an age when business, mobility, and strategy are inseparable.