Julia Longbottom, Director of Trade & Investment and Consul General at the British Embassy in Warsaw, talks to Krzysztof Pawlik.

■ What opportunities attract British companies to Poland?
Poland is now one of the larger markets in the European Union. Poland's EU membership has been a big factor in reassuring British companies about doing business here. It gives them greater security than perhaps in the past that the rules of the free market will apply. Poland's geographical location is a key factor because it is well located within Central Europe, but also provides access to markets further east like Russia or Ukraine. It is a market that is quickly becoming more sophisticated and is enjoying strong economic growth, which is important for British businesses wanting to enter the market. There is a lot of interest in technological solutions. Countries like Poland have an opportunity to catch up quickly and move rapidly to the latest and best technology.

I have recently seen more evidence of British companies coming here to source lower-cost products, parts or components on the Polish market. There is also a lot of agricultural produce being exported from Poland to the UK. This is partly driven by British and other companies who have invested here, and produce and export new products to UK. There is also great interest in shared service centres. Some large British multinational companies are looking to establish all of their accounting and in-house financial services in Poland, drawing on the pool of well-qualified graduates, and in some cases creating 1,000 jobs or more. I think that we will see some of these being announced very soon. This demonstrates the strong interest in Polish human capital, which is one of the most interesting aspects of the Polish market for British business.

■ How interesting is the Polish market in comparison to its neighbours in Central Europe?
If you look at total inward investment in Poland compared with the Czech Republic or Slovakia, Poland has the largest cumulative amount, but in per capita terms, those other countries have done relatively better than Poland. So you have to ask why that is. I think that perhaps the attitude in Poland towards attracting inward investment has not been as positive as it should have been in the past. We hear from British investors and potential investors that they find it difficult to meet the right people or to get access to senior figures. They comment on the lack of a one-stop-shop. It would help enormously if they could go to a single organization like PAIiIZ [Polish Information and Foreign Investment Agency] and get help with solving every step in the bureaucratic process, rather than deal with different people on different issues.

There are also negative perceptions about foreign investors in Poland, often played up by politicians. It seems to be fashionable for Polish politicians to claim that, "Foreign investors take all their profits out of Poland." This is clearly populist nonsense. Such companies pay tax in Poland, create jobs and employ Polish people, and contribute to Polish economic growth. There is no reason for foreign companies not to pay tax in Poland. The corporate income tax rate, at 19 percent, is very reasonable. Foreign investors do a lot for suppliers in the local business community. A company like Tesco, for example, requires high standards from its suppliers. Many small businesses in Poland have become more competitive through supplying Tesco, and are now exporting their products competitively to the rest of the EU. British investors also have strong corporate governance principles, with clear audits and strict reporting requirements, as well as transparent senior management structures. They are all bound by British bribery and corruption law when they are operating overseas, which means that any British company or individual will be held criminally responsible in the UK if they engage in corrupt practices in Poland.

I feel strongly that foreign investment makes a very strong contribution to the Polish economy, certainly British investment, and I would like to see more political recognition of that fact. I certainly hope that after the elections there will be a more positive environment surrounding foreign investment.

■ How do you promote British trade in Poland?
First, we act on behalf of individual British companies looking for advice on how to enter the Polish market. Usually they want to find contacts in the market: contacts with potential customers or with an agent or distributor who can market and sell their products. This is a UK Trade & Investment service provided by the Embassy's commercial section. In this Embassy we prepare more than 100 such reports every year.

Second, we host groups of British companies visiting the Polish market on trade missions from the UK. Last year we welcomed about 35 different trade missions and groups visiting the Polish market. Sometimes, they are mixed sector groups from a particular UK region or chamber of commerce. Others focus on specific sectors, for example railways, airports or environment. In those cases, we often organize a sectoral seminar for the visiting companies to present the capabilities of the UK sector to decision-makers and potential customers in Poland. These sectoral missions often concern key strategic sectors in Poland, where British business, and the British government, can support Polish policy makers in tackling the challenges of reform, restructuring and so on.

All our trade missions are featured on the Embassy's website (www.britishembassy.pl) so any Polish business can find out who is coming and which companies or sectors are involved. They are welcome to contact us, and if they want to meet their British counterparts, we can include them in an upcoming event.