Having represented the industry at a recent Government meeting on a potential no deal Brexit, Kevin Buckley, GGF group chief executive has issued a statement with advice to all companies in the industry, should the UK leave the EU on 31 March, with no withdrawal agreement.
Although a no deal Brexit is supposed to be a low probability (with the worst case being a backstop), there seems to be no end to the coverage on that very scenario becoming a reality.
A few weeks ago at the Construction Leaders Council Forum regarding the possibility of a no deal Brexit, the GGF is keen to share some potential implications should a no deal Brexit be the eventual outcome.
Key points:
Industry standards
These will continue ‘as-is’ EU standards may be rebranded as UK standards. However, the reverse is not true. After a no-deal Brexit, anyone putting products on the market that have to comply with CPR ongoing testing and will have to undertake any retesting with an EU accredited body (not in the UK).
Importing and VAT
If you import from the EU, you will have to pay VAT at the point of entry to get access to your goods. There is an HMRC guidelines document about this which you can find here.
Port processes will be more complicated – so prepare for delays to your imports and exports
From day one of a potential no deal Brexit, imports and exports will be regulated by existing World Trade Organisation (WTO) agreements – the GGF says it is advisable to be ready for this in advance. In the case of a no-deal Brexit, the Federation says it is highly unlikely there will be any alternative import deals that are more favourable to the UK
If you export, be aware that each country in the EU generally has slightly different import regimes so the GGF says that it is advisable to be prepared for different importing rules for different countries in the event of a no deal Brexit.
Immigration
According to the GGF, a recent white paper on immigration could reportedly affect your business should there be a no deal Brexit.
The GGF states that the criteria of this white paper would appear to be:
If an immigrant has been in the UK for five years of over then he/she is eligible to stay, work, receive benefits and pension rights.
A skilled or semi-skilled immigrant employee will be allowed to continue working in the UK providing they have an employer who will act as a sponsor. (This could be subject to a salary threshold).
There will be no limit to the number of workers in this category.
An unskilled immigrant employee can work in the UK for a maximum of 12 months, with a 12-month ‘cooling-off period’ between visits.
Immigrants would be unlikely to access the benefits system.
The GGF points out that all of the above may change as this is only a white paper at present.
The message from the GGF is; be prepared. The GGF says that there can be ‘no doubt’ that things could become ‘somewhat chaotic’ on day one and for some months afterwards in the event of a no-deal Brexit on 31 March 2019. The GGF concern is that, for some members who are in the SME category, those months of disruption could create some business specific issues around cash flow, supply of goods and completion of work.
The GGF will continue in discussions with Government on Brexit and will inform its members first on any significant events.
To find out more about the implications and outcome of the GGF’s meeting with Government please visit https://www.ggf.org.uk/ggf-members-first-brexit-news/
