Brexit: Impact on North West businesses

United Kingdom

This article was produced by Nabarro LLP, which joined CMS on 1 May 2017.

In his Budget announcement, Chancellor George Osborne revealed that the Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) forecast that the UK economy will grow by 2% this year, 2.2% in 2017 and 2.1% in 2018, 2019 and 2020. However, these figures were predicated on Britain remaining in the EU. Leaving Europe, said the OBR, could result in “potentially disruptive uncertainty” for the economy. To find out what North West businesses have to say about the forthcoming referendum, Nabarro and North West Business Insider gathered leaders from various industries to share their thoughts on “in or out” and to hear the findings from the recent Brexit survey we carried out with Insider, surveying 1000 business leaders across the region.

Half of all North West business leaders believe the region’s economy will benefit most from remaining inside the EU. However, a significant number believe there has not been enough information to make an informed decision either way.

You can read commentary from the Brexit Round Table here and view our blogs on Brexit and what you can do to prepare your business below:

Brexit - Sector Focus

Following the vote to leave the EU, we have created a guide which identifies the potential impact of Brexit on each of our key sectors. This guide will provide you with the key implications that you need to be aware of and a sector key contact should you wish to discuss this further. A copy can be downloaded here.

Brexit: Impact on UK Real Estate

Before the referendum, we asked: what impact would Brexit have on UK commercial real estate? 64% of respondents felt there would be a negative impact, but 72% said that the then impending referendum would not delay their investment plans. Read more in our report on the UK Real Estate market.