After what can only be described as months of campaigning, the UK has this morning decided to leave the European Union. The decision has been made, but how will this impact the UK’s small businesses?
After what can only be described as months of campaigning, the UK has this morning decided to leave the European Union. The decision has been made, but how will this impact the UK’s small businesses?
EU Laws scrapped!
Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) account for nearly half of the UK’s economy. Although EU laws guarantee workers holiday pay, paid maternity leave, and increased protection in the workplace, it does not mean that British government are going to scrap this right away.
Trade agreements
About half of the UK’s overseas trade is conducted within the EU, allowing the free movement of goods, services, capital and workers, and trade negotiations with other parts of the world. Although some workers’ rights are guaranteed by EU laws, tax rates, benefits and the minimum wage are down to the UK’s government decisions. Britain will now be able to negotiate it’s own trade deals with other countries. UK companies are now free from EU regulations, but still free to trade with EU countries as we import more from them than we export to them.
SME Support
The EU provided support for SMEs through means such as grants and loans, and the British government has an active support programme for businesses. For SMEs that trade within the EU, trade can continue under the World Trade Organisation (WTO) rules, and it is highly likely that an EU-UK Free Trade Agreement (FTA) will now be agreed, showing the importance of UK markets for EU exporters.
Export
British exporters, including SMEs, can now negotiate Free Trade Agreement deals rather than relying on the EU, where leaders could dispute negotiations. Our government can now negotiate with growing partners such as the US and India or Australia and New Zealand to see what other opportunities they can bring to our businesses.
What next?
Will this be a good thing? Who knows. All we can do is wait and see what happens next!
We promise to keep on producing our high quality websites, being there to offer our expertise to our clients, and help as many businesses as we can no matter what their budget may be.
Now is a great time to start shopping locally and supporting other small businesses.
For more information on how we can help your business during this historical change, contact us today.
Source of information and pictures: BBC, and Better Off Out.
