Business patience with warring Conservatives is at 'breaking point', bosses warn
3 min read
Patience with the Government's Brexit strategy is at "breaking point", the British Chambers of Commerce has warned.
The powerful business group - which represents firms employing more than half a million workers - urged ministers to "stop squabbling" as Tory infighting over Brexit intensified.
The BCC said ministers have still not clarified a host of key details on the UK's future trade with the European Union, including whether businesses will have to pay VAT on goods at the point of import and whether goods will be held up at border checkpoints.
They also demanded to know if UK businesses will be able to take part in joint EU research and development projects after Brexit, and whether or not firms will be able to transfer staff between the UK and EU "using the same processes as currently".
BCC director general Adam Marshall said firms were becoming increasingly exasperated with the Government's continued divisions over EU exit.
“Over the past two years, businesses have been patient," he said.
"We have supported the government’s drive to seek the best possible deal for the UK economy. We have given time, expertise and real-world experience to support hard-pressed civil service negotiators.
"We have convened all across the UK to ensure that every business community’s Brexit concerns can be heard by elected representatives and officials.
"Now, with the time running out ahead of the UK’s exit from the EU, business patience is reaching breaking point."
The BCC's warning comes after a host of big businesses - including aviation giant Airbus and carmaker BMW - heaped pressure on the Government to flesh out its Brexit proposals, prompting a backlash from some senior Conservatives.
Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt branded the Airbus relocation warning "completely inappropriate", while Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson is said to have uttered "f**k business" at a Foreign Office reception.
But the BCC chief said business had "every right to speak out" when it was "abundantly clear that the practical questions affecting the competitiveness of their firms and the livelihoods of millions of people remain unanswered".
Mr Marshall added: "With less than nine months go to until Brexit day, we are little closer to the answers businesses need than we were the day after the referendum.
“It’s time for politicians to stop the squabbling and the Westminster point-scoring – and start putting the national economic interest first.
"These are not ‘siren voices’ or special interests. They are the practical, real-world concerns of businesses of every size and sector, in every part of the UK."
A government spokesperson said they remained "confident of getting a good deal with the EU to ensure trade remains as free and frictionless as possible".
The spokesperson added: "Ministers continue to work closely with business to understand their concerns, and by successfully negotiating the implementation period with the EU until December 2020, companies can carry on trading with confidence on the same terms as they do now.
"We have put forward workable proposals to the EU on a range of areas from the backstop to security - and the White Paper, which will be published shortly, will continue to drive this process forward."
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