Your Business Magazine 2022 - 57

After Brexit
S
ince the United Kingdom's exit from the
European Union, the situation has changed for
British businesses that wish to trade in the EU.
Previously they could buy from and sell to the
EU without customs fees or red tape - indeed,
the EU rules effectively did away with the idea
of import and export. That's no longer the case for the UK.
The UK-EU Trade & Cooperation Agreement (TCA) still
allows British companies to do business with the EU free
from quotas and tariffs, but there are customs procedures
to comply with for export, and border checks for import.
Many British businesses reported difficulties and falling
profits in the period after leaving the EU
in January 2020, and the Office for Budget
Responsibility says exports and imports
will be around 15% lower in the long run
than if the UK had remained in the EU.
The government, however, has repeatedly
stressed the positive aspects of the UK being
able to control its own borders, finances
and regulations. Here is James Caan's take
on the effects of Brexit for UK businesses.
Unforeseen impact
" I don't think we appreciated the
impact Brexit would have, but having
talked to business owners all over
the country it seems that everyone
has been affected in one way or another, " says James.
" We're in a global economy and everything we do interacts
internationally - when we were part of Europe it was easy.
" An example of how different things have become is when I
took my car to get serviced recently. Previously when I needed
a car part from Germany, it would be there the next day; now it
takes three weeks. Not being in the EU has had a direct impact
on whatever we are buying, whether it's goods or services; it has
become incredibly inconvenient and expensive. Economically,
it has had an impact on our daily lives and cost of living.
" Disruption to businesses has led to increased pricing. The
cost of goods and services has gone up, and some of this has
been passed on to the consumer and some has been absorbed
by the businesses themselves. When exporting to Europe there
is now cost and disruption, with more paperwork and increased
timescales. The bureaucracy has changed and become more
complicated, which means goods can sit in customs for weeks.
The effect on the workforce
" One of the main reasons people voted to leave the EU was
immigration, but did we pay too high a price? There now aren't
enough people to do the jobs British people don't want to do.
Before Brexit, there were around one million people from
eastern Europe working in hospitality, many in restaurants and
hotels. Now they've gone, we don't have the labour to replace
them. Recently I went to a restaurant that was half full; I asked
about all the empty chairs and they said they simply didn't
have the staff so couldn't take the bookings. How frustrating
that this business was unable to cope with a full restaurant.
" There aren't
enough people
to do the jobs
British people
don't want to do "
" When people say immigrants have
taken our jobs, it's simply not true. There's
now a shortage of workers that's affecting
businesses and it's a real issue. We're paying
some people more to attract them into
certain roles, but that is causing inflation
which has hit record levels because the
supply chain has been impacted. It's hurting
our pockets and it's all Brexit-related. If
people knew all this at the time, they might
have thought twice about voting to leave. "
Finding a solution
So what can people do to mitigate the impact
of Brexit? " People will say buy local, buy
British, but that's easier said than done, " says James.
" In the long term we'll become more self-sufficient,
but that means rebuilding and creating industries
that historically UK people haven't wanted to be part
of. Hundreds of thousands of people used to come to
the UK from Europe every summer to pick and pack
fruit - where are we going to get those people now?
We've also had a lack of HGV drivers, which started
because European drivers left the UK. Salaries have
increased, so people want to do that job now, but the
cost of hiring these new drivers has a direct impact
on the price we pay for goods, which creates inflation.
" Not all industries have been affected equally,
of course. The worst-affected industries have
probably been food and agriculture, furniture
and electronics. Professional services, such as IT,
recruitment, legal and financial services, meanwhile,
haven't been disrupted to the same extent.
" Industries such as these have been able to
adapt more easily, in some cases because of the
pandemic. Increased numbers of people working
from home has meant better access to more staff for
recruitment. Previously, companies looking to recruit
had to ask people where they lived and what their
commute involved. Today, you can hire someone
from a different country. We can now engage in
conversations we couldn't have pre-Brexit, and
that's an unforeseen benefit of the pandemic. It's
had quite an impact on the way businesses recruit. "
57
WORDS GEORGINA MARIC
Your Business Magazine 2022

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