What will Brexit mean for town?
Maidenhead: Countdown to European Union departure
As the UK prepares to leave the European Union tomorrow (Friday), figures from the community have revealed what they think it means for the town.
After several deadlines were set and missed, Boris Johnson looks set to lead the nation out of the EU on January 31, 1,315 days after the Brexit referendum took place on June 23, 2016.
Speaking to the Advertiser on Monday, council leader Cllr Andrew Johnson (Con, Hurley and Walthams) described it as a ‘promising opportunity' for the borough.
He said: “We have invested a small amount of money on Brexit preparation, we are in a far better place now than we would have been if we’d left on October 31.
“We see it as a promising opportunity to push hard for greater international investment in the UK and the Thames Valley.
Cllr Joshua Reynolds (Lib Dem, Furze Platt) campaigned to become Maidenhead’s MP in May on the promise that he would oppose Brexit in the House of Commons.
Cllr Reynolds was not successful in his bid for the seat, finishing a distant second to Conservative Theresa May with 13,774 votes, but the 20-year-old told the Advertiser that he is still opposed to exiting the European Union.
He said: “I think to start with we are going to have fewer opportunities.
“Brexit is going to take our right to work and to live in other EU countries away overnight.
“It’s a scary process, we don’t know what’s going to be coming around the corner and if we look at things going on internationally at the moment, now is not the time to be pulling out of international cooperation.”
Meanwhile, Mike Miller, president of Maidenhead & District Chamber of Commerce, gave his thoughts on how Brexit will impact business in the town.
He said: “I think that Brexit will have a positive and at the least neutral impact on businesses in Maidenhead. Bear in mind that although Brexit Day is Friday, nothing will change through the transition period through to December 2020.
"Suppliers and customers in the EU will continue to deal with UK customers and suppliers so not much will change.
“Don’t focus on the past and what was but look to the future and the great opportunities that will be available to all of us.
“Businesses involved in trade with EU suppliers and customers are already prepared for additional paperwork even though there will be additional costs in 2021.”