NI Chamber Chief Executive Ann McGregor.

Commenting ahead of the publication of technical notices from the government relating to the possibility of ‘no deal’ in the Brexit negotiations, Ann McGregor, Chief Executive of Northern Ireland Chamber of Commerce and Industry (NI Chamber), said:

“Businesses have had an extremely long wait for answers to some basic questions around Brexit and they have been particularly frustrated by the lack of clear guidance on some of the issues that are within the UK Government’s own control. As ‘no deal’ preparations get underway with the publishing of the EU Exit Technical Notices (TNs), the UK Government must move quickly and give businesses as much detailed information as possible to avoid significant disruption in any scenario. The planned notices around areas such as company law, Customs and borders, EU programmes, Financial services, Trade agreements continuity and VAT for example could be extremely useful.

“However in order to be deemed a success these notices must provide our members with the clarity they need so that they can continue to make decisions and conduct business both at home and across borders on 30 March 2019.  Companies need to know how the government will handle customs and VAT procedures after Brexit and what the immigration rules will be on day one so they can reassure existing staff and recruit successfully. Westminster must also go further and set out a clear immigration policy that addresses the skills shortages that are critical to local businesses. Failure to do so means that the economic potential of Northern Ireland, and other regions, will continue to be held back.”