Brexit continues to be the gift that keeps on giving for news editors, who have a seemingly insatiable appetite for all things Brexit-related as it continues to dominate traditional print and social media. In addition to the media coverage there is no shortage of opinion pieces, speculation, predictions and projections from economists, advisors, banks and other reputable sources, which might lead you to think it is easy for SMEs to plan for the potential impact of Brexit on their businesses.
But this is not proving to be the case in practice as the latest InterTradeIreland Business Monitor survey has identified that 98% of SMEs across the island of Ireland are yet to commence planning for Brexit.
In this article Mark Steritt, newly appointed Brexit Manager at InterTradeIreland outlines the importance of planning but also provides SMEs with help and support to get started.
Latest Survey reveals local companies not taking advantage of stable environment to plan for potential Brexit impacts
The latest quarterly (April - June 2017) InterTradeIreland Business Monitor Survey, shows that, despite the UK voting to leave the EU 12 months ago, the proportion of companies with a plan in place to deal with the potential outcomes of Brexit has remained static at 2 per cent.
This figure only increases to three per cent for those exporting, despite 34 per cent stating that they have already experienced a negative impact due to Brexit. Exporting businesses claim that the lack of clarity around Brexit is stalling planning efforts with more than three quarters (77 per cent) reporting that uncertainty makes it difficult to plan
Potential Impact of WTO Tariffs on Cross-Border Trade - report
We have recently published a report examining the potential impact of trade between Ireland, Northern Ireland and Great Britian in the case of the application of EU third-country tariffs (as registered with the WTO) being applied and an increase in non-tariff basrriers on goods trade.
The scenarios presented highlight the large variation in the product and sectoral exposure to changes in tariffs and nontariff barriers.
The main findings of the scenario analysis include :
Products with the highest tariffs are mainly in the food, clothes and tobacco sectors.
WTO tariffs are levied on specific product lines and the variation across products can range from 0% to over 80%.
Applying the WTO tariff schedule to 2016 trade levels is estimated to have an effect on reducing cross-border trade by 9%
Over 1,400 SMEs to benefit from €16.6 million cross-border scheme supporting innovation The Minister for Culture, Heritage, and the Gaeltacht, Heather Humphreys TD, has today launched the Co-Innovate programme in Monaghan, along with Permanent Secretary of the Department for the Economy, Dr Andrew McCormick.
Co-Innovate aims to increase the numbers of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) involved in research and innovation across the border region of Ireland (Cavan, Donegal, Leitrim, Louth, Monaghan, Sligo), Northern Ireland and parts of western Scotland, from 22 per cent to 33 per cent over the next five years.