North East businesses must use coming months to assess impact on trade, people & regulation – EY
Mark Hatton, Senior Partner for EY in the North East, comments:
“The initial impact of the vote to leave the EU will not be felt straight away as we will still be full members. Although we may start to see investments being delayed, M&A put on hold, and possibly a decline in job mobility.
“The longer term picture however is where we expect most impact. Businesses across the region must use the next few months to assess their position in terms of trade, migration and regulation. Europe is a significant investor in the North East, as our recent UK Attractiveness Survey shows, in particular from France and Germany.
“Organisations need to assess their access to markets, exports and imports and the relevant impact on their supply chains too. Access to skilled staff will be high up the agenda for some sectors. Changes in regulation are possible, which may impact on standards and future investment. Government policy is also highly relevant, for instance, in terms of taxation, EU research funding and potential use of state aid by UK Government to back selected sectors.
“We do not know the exact changes that we will be facing over the coming years, but this time can be well-spent by strengthening current positions and relationships, planning for the most-likely scenarios and looking out for new opportunities that will come.”
