Dublin top for Brexit relocation

DUBLIN is the most popular destination for staff relocations and new European hubs or offices post-Brexit.

The capital remains the most popular post-Brexit EU destination, alongside Luxembourg, according to EY’s Financial Services Brexit Tracker.

The figures show there are 36 financial services firms who have announced intentions to relocate UK operations and/or staff to Dublin, with Luxembourg attracting 29 companies in total, followed by Frankfurt with 23 companies.

But when it comes to the number of people who have been, or plan to be, relocated, Dublin comes in third, bringing in around 1,200 UK employees, behind Paris on 2,800 and Frankfurt with 1,800. Business group ISME said it was delighted’ at the news of high numbers coming to Dublin for work but had logistical concerns for SME employers.

A spokesman said: ‘We must ensure workers on the average industrial wage can afford to rent, and ultimately buy, in Dublin.’ This comes as a recent report by UK insurance group CIA Landlord showed that Dublin is the sixth most expensive capital city in the world for renters, after looking at the average cost of renting one-bed apartments in 38 capital cities across the globe.

Almost a year since the UK officially left the European Union, 44% of financial services firms have moved, or plan to move, some UK operations and/or staff to locations in the EU, which is up from 41% in January 2020.

The percentage in terms of confirmed moves to multiple locations in Europe is 13%, which compares to 12% last year.

But there has been a fall in announcements of operational moves leaving the UK in comparison to the wake of the referendum, when they rose steadily from 18% in December 2016 to 41% in January 2020, as the number of staff relocations has been revised downwards. The total number of Brexitrelated job relocations from the UK to Europe has fallen to just under 7,400, down from 7,600 in December 2020.