This study provides an assessment of how multinational companies have changed in recent years and how they have affected the economy and political structure of the United Kingdom. The authors raise questions as to why Britain, despite its economic problems, continues to attract international investors and why British multinationals are more broadly represented abroad than some competitors. They also examine arguments for and against Britain's heavy dependence on multinationals and analyze how the firms' responses to the new era of global competition have changed the balance of effect.