By Tara O'Connor, originally published in the Financial Times Adviser.

A cross-party panel of MPs gathered in London to discuss how to revive investment in the UK.

A group of four MPs from Labour, Conservatives, Liberal Democrats and Scottish National Party agreed that more needs to be done to change the attitude to investment in the UK at an event hosted by New Capital Consensus at Chatham House.

Chair of the think-tank, Ashok Gupta, said DC funds which are invested in MSCI Global Index send more money to Apple than to the UK economy.

“Pension schemes by their very nature are long-term, they can tolerate short term volatility for long term returns,” he said.

“We are not arguing for more risk we are arguing for better regulatory management.

“An investor who holds an asset for 20 years has a fundamentally different profile than someone who needs to liquidate now. The system treats them both the same.”

Labour MP, John Grady, said there was a “cultural issue” in the UK relating to risk and entrepreneurialism.

He said: “The key thing about risk is that things go wrong sometimes.”

Grady said firms were fearful of a “political pile-on” in the event of things going wrong.

He said improving investment in the UK was of “profound importance to getting us out of this funk we are in at the moment” and contributing to economic growth.

Kirsty Blackman, the SNP’s treasury spokesperson, said the government stepping in could help improve investment.

She pointed to a review of diversity on boards which was successful in improving board make up.

“There is a case for the government to get involved where things are not working,” said Blackman.

She also said the way certain investment risk is considered needs to change, moving away from looking at shorter time period to a 30-year period.

“We need to move, we need to make changes,” Blackman added.

Sarah Olney, Liberal Democrat MP, said the challenge for politicians was how getting a more functioning economy can be reconciled with better outcomes for people.

“It is about giving individuals empowerment and autonomy,” added Olney.

She said Britain is “crying out” for investment which can be channelled from pension funds and retail investors.

Grady, said the impact of inaction in relation to improving investment would be bed in the long-term for the economy.

He added: “If we do not do anything because we are paralysed by that range of reason we will not move on.”

While Conservative MP John Glen, said tax incentives could prompt a change in behaviour.

“We have got to normalise a different appreciation for risk and what it means,” he said.

“We have grown to believe, post-2009, that we have a regulatory environment that will take care of everything so you don’t need to put the onus on the individual to invest.”