Scots firms warn Brexit will be bad for business amid preparation fears
The majority of Scots firms are not prepared for Brexit and blame “uncertainty” over the UK government’s negotiating position with the EU, a new survey of firms has found.
The Fraser of Al lander Institute spoke to about 350 businesses from a variety of sectors to find out more about their view on EU departure.
“The overwhelming response from the businesses we surveyed was that there is not enough information currently available to enable them to plan for potential Brexit outcomes, the study found.
“Whilst this is not that surprising, the scale of the response clearly shows that more needs to be done to help businesses prepare for the range of possible outcomes (even if the final ‘deal’ remains unclear).”
It found that 75 per cent of firms in Scotland said they had not received enough information about leaving the European Union to allow them to plan for the different possible outcomes of Brexit.
And over 59 per cent of firms cited “uncertainty over the UK government’s objectives” in negotiations with Brussels as a factor in this.
Of the firms surveyed, only 6 per cent said the Brexit decision had had a positive impact on their business, with 44 per cent saying it had been dam- aging. A third of firms reported there had been a negative impact on current investment activity, with 41 per cent also saying there had been a negative impact on new investment.
In addition, 33 p er cent of companies indicated Brexit had had a negative impact on staff recruitment, with only 3 per cent reporting a positive impact.
In a blog post the Institute said fears about shortages of food and medicines could be overblown, but these could be the “unfortunate reality of the UK crashing out of the EU”.
It added: “It is hard to believe that we are in a position where senior UK ministers are openly talking about not just a hard Brexit, but no deal.
“Two years on from the referendum outcome, simply kicking the can down the road – or sleepwalking into a no - deal outcome – is simply no longer a credible economic strategy to adopt.”