Jane 🌱💙🇺🇦 Profile picture
May 11, 2018 40 tweets 19 min read Twitter logo Read on Twitter
At @CityREDI's #BrexitRegionalImpact workshop to "discuss the likely impact of Brexit on the West Midlands economy & agree on the urgent actions that need to be taken in the crucial months ahead"

Will business take a stand for #PeoplesVote or roll over?

birmingham.ac.uk/schools/busine…
It's hard to see how Brexit can be seen as anything but a disaster for the West Midlands, but I will listen to everyone and report back.
#BrexitRegionalImpact
#SaveBrum
What's really special about the CityREDI Brexit Impact studies is that they don't just cover the UK but also the rest of the EU.
BrexitImpact on the EU isn't as bad as on the UK but it's still bad. Hard to imagine maintaining good relations after this harm.
#BrexitRegionalImpact
Initial speaker Professor Daniel Wincott from @UKandEU explaining how the UK in a Changing Europe project originated and how it has developed.
There's a lot of good info on their website about Brexit
ukandeu.ac.uk

#BrexitRegionalImpact
Next speaker is Lloyd Broad from @BhamCityCouncil trying to focus on "not crying into our cornflakes" about how bad Brexit is, and concentrate on trying to minimise the #Brexitregionalimpact on West Midlands.
Devolution is critical, but Central Government isn't talking to cities
He says @LGAcomms think that the only way to make a success of Brexit is to make partnerships between cities. As the National Government are cutting Local Government out of Brexit discussions, they went to the EU, trying to form bonds with @EUROCITIEStweet
#BrexitRegionalImpact
Outcome of their meeting with Barnier was a commitment to a hearing at the EU, hopefully in July.

So regional & local government are independently trying to work on our behalf to maximise connections between European cities while UKGov tears us out of EU.
#BrexitRegionalImpact
Next: examination of the effect on trade.
You cannot tell anything about an economy by looking at imports + exports. That's a simplistic political argument.

Need to use the global value chains, the way elements move.
Value Added in Exports is the end impact on local economy
Likely impact of Brexit on UK is 11-17% of GDP
4.6x higher than impact on EU.
All about supply chains
Compare to 3% in global financial crisis.

UK sectoral analysis shows huge £140B economic activity is at risk of damage, 2.5 million jobs.

We're screwed
#BrexitRegionalImpact
Speaker from the Black Country Group showing just how heavily the majority of business is adversely affected by Brexit.

Trying to work out how to help, have gathered affected businesses, other commerce groups. Raised concerns with Dept of Business
#BrexitRegionalImpact
Reports from Black Country businesses of EU partners ending business relationships because of Brexit.
Lack of certainty makes planning impossible.
Loss of EU skilled workers is huge concern, some already going.
Lack of UK skilled workers to replace them

#BrexitRegionalImpact
Overall impression of small & medium sized Black Country businesses feeling abandoned by UK Government. No guidance.
They are heavily dependent on EU trade, already losing trade & workers.
Also concerned about lack of clarity on business support funding
#BrexitRegionalImpact
Next up, a speaker who promotes region to foreign investment.
Has been very successful in past decade but the loss of our position as doorway to Europe & uncertainty since the Brexit vote did have an immediate effect on foreign investment

#BrexitRegionalImpact
There.was a rise in capital investment from China & US due to low value sterling meaning more for their money,

but also a large negative impact on investment in many sectors, e.g. 30% drop in Automotive industry investment.

#BrexitRegionalImpact
Greatest problem is uncertainty about trade and labour supply.

Our British capacity for innovation may let us manage the challenges of Brexit but the uncertainty and possibility of trade friction & skills is a huge problem to overcome.

#BrexitRegionalImpact
Next speaker is from Department of Brexit at BCU.

West Midlands residents have the lowest disposable income per head in the UK. We're 10% poorer than the next poorest area, but our productivity is vital to UK success. This supports the need for devolution
#BrexitRegionalImpact
Global trade is actually experiencing an increased costs from travel due an increased desire for immediacy, so trading further afield makes no sense.

Effect of Chinese exports on UK is the same size as Newcastle. Australia & Canada are like Leicester.

#BrexitRegionalImpact
Next up, the West Midlands and Advanced Manufacturing Competitiveness Challenges.

Earlier session was depressing enough but I've got a bad feeling about this...

#BrexitRegionalImpact
Production cost increases from Brexit 0.5 - 1.3% regional averages, but
automotive & fishing sectors are facing a 4% increase in production costs, agriculture also high.
That's a massive impact on competiveness challenge

#BrexitRegionalImpact
The European regions & cities we are in competition with have competitiveness strategies in place. Do we?

This website visualises the data on EU trade to enable regional economic strategy development.

#BrexitRegionalImpact
torre.nl/eugrowth/bilin…

#BrexitRegionalImpact
Very fast speaker about post-Brexit opportunities for "Industrial Revolution 4"
Vital to maintain access to SM, invest in training, develop much better strategies
All good ideas but can't help thinking we'd be able to implement all of it better if we Remain.
#BrexitRegionalImpact
KPMG Automotive speaker: Auto Industry is 4% of GDP.

Post-Brexit investment drop is very worrying.
£2.6B 2015 to £1.1B 2017

Majorities of 1.7M have German car parts
44% of vehicles fitted with German parts are exported.

#BrexitRegionalImpact
Brexit is 1 of 3 trade disruptors:
The others are changes in fuel & autonomous vehicles.

Innovation to meet these new markets requires a 4-7 year plan.
Brexit uncertainty is affecting auto industry investment already.
UK likely to miss out on next gen.
#BrexitRegionalImpact
Simple customs issues with Brexit:
Will create 180,000 new importers / exporters.
£4B/ yr admin costs.

Paying VAT at point of export will create £billions of cashflow problems as it's likely months before it's returned.

#BrexitRegionalImpact
Utterly depressed by the speaker from KMPG Automotive saying although he voted Remain he'd vote for Brexit in a second referendum as he feels we should "respect the democratic process".

Since it's plain Brexit is bad & the EURef was flawed, why? Madness.

#BrexitRegionalImpact
Last up, a speaker from Warwick Uni trying to find a way for regions to deal with the Brexit drop in inward investment.
The best way to do so is with skilled workers.
We have a lack of them.
Immigration will have to increase.
It's a whole other cliff edge
#BrexitRegionalImpact
An obviously frustrated @nigel_driffield provided the key quotes of the day.
Businesses/Recruitment agencies are saying "it turns out our European workers are not happy that we voted to Leave"
"That is where we are with the current insanity of the situation"
#BrexitRegionalImpact
I asked a question about why UK business isn't stepping up more to #StopBrexit since it's so plainly Very Bad Idea.

Apparently there's increasingly vocal objection from businesses, so this may become a force in time, but we're running out of time.

#BrexitRegionalImpact
"Increasingly obvious we're not living in a rational world"

#Brexit

There wasn't good enough evidence when we voted but there is now.

#PeoplesVote

#BrexitRegionalImpact
Plain from today's speakers that the only way for West Midlands to survive Brexit is devolution.

To me this means the end result of Brexit will be the division of the United Kingdom into smaller regions that will be competing for the smaller opportunities.

#BrexitRegionalImpact
I love the idea of us having more control over our priorities and investment, but it feels like Brexit is dividing us against ourselves.

#BrexitregionalImpact
Businesses (especially SMEs) seem to be struggling with complacency / inertia regarding strategies to adapt to Brexit, especially regarding exports and EU Citizen rights.

It's difficult to make strategies when you don't know what you are dealing with.

#BrexitRegionalImpact
Need much greater integration of UK businesses with chambers of commerce etc to enable support & good practice during transition.
Good question about loss of EU funding for economic, community & research development.
Lots of discussion but no plans yet.
Unlikely to ever compensate for what we got from EU though.

#BrexitRegionalImpact
Last question about rhe impact on non-automotive industry in West Midlands, with focus on construction. Call for better support for local firms.
Construction industry is less impacted than most

#BrexitRegionalImpact
Although that assessment doesn't tally completely with this one:
Had a big chat with LB afterwards about Birmingham CC approach to Brexit.

Seems like the 2016 local elections meant that no-one in office wanted to run the risk of influencing voters so they all kept neutral on Brexit Ref despite importance of EU to city
#SaveBrum
#PeoplesVote
Although annoyed by the cowardice on display by politicians that are supposed to act in our best interests, I did come away heartened by a sense that BhamCC are not in favour of Brexit and may actually stand up to minimise it (now local elections are behind them).
#SaveBrum
Floated my idea about using Brum as a test case for a #PeoplesVote, given how close the result was here (<4000 votes in it).
Give Brummies proper info about #BrexitRegionalimpact on West Midlands & UK, then get them to vote again.
He didn't laugh in my face.

#SaveBrum #FinalSay
Now this is interesting.
The "How does being in the EU benefit Birmingham" report I heard about at the @CityREDI #BrexitregionalImpact meeting I wrote this thread about has resurfaced.
But they won't let us see it @EUinBrum birminghammail.co.uk/news/local-new…
#SaveBrum #StopBrexitSaveBritain

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More from @localnotail

Aug 30, 2018
Sign up for #FinalSay today.
Let's look before we Leave.
We need change, but this is not the change we are looking for
#LookB4WeLeave

Better safe than sorry.
Do you want this future?
It's in the hands of the People.
Please help put the brakes on Brexit
change.org/p/theresa-may-…
I miss summer already.
Crisp chill in the air.
The washing didn't dry on the line this afternoon.
The nights are drawing in.
But there's a different feeling to the usual turn of the seasons.
A dread, building these past years.
Brexit is coming & it will break #OurNHS
#StopBrexit
Why aren't more People helping to #SaveOurNHS?
Vote Leave's campaign was about giving tons of much-needed money to the NHS.
That's not going to happen.
In fact #OurNHS representatives say Brexit will break it
Let's check (democratically!) that enough of us want that eh?
#FinalSay
Read 8 tweets
Aug 20, 2018
Last year, when I was really suicidal because #BrexitReality has unbalanced me, I made this petition to David Davis asking for a FinalSay.
you.38degrees.org.uk/petitions/meas…

I'm grateful to everyone who signed up, but it made no difference & I nearly gave up.
Rumble strips are a godsend.
I'm OK but I must fight those feelings of helplessness every single day.
#BrexitIsPersonal

Then there was another #FinalSay petition on @HocPetitions petition that, despite @DExEUgov trying to reject it, went to (great) debate in December 2017.

@HoCpetitions @DExEUgov How much longer do we need to wait until we all accept that we need to put the brakes on & check Brexit?

We'll never be United Kingdom without #FinalSay

It's a result we can all respect, however it turns out

Better safe than sorry

Look before we Leave

change.org/p/theresa-may-…
Read 7 tweets
Aug 19, 2018
So tired of all this Brexshit.
I wish I could find the generator of the Someone Else's Problem field that has bewitched people
#TheyAreLyingToUs

Next they will ask us to #RespectTheResult.
I will, when it is a respectable result. Not this #Brexitshambles
#Fairvotenow #FinalSay
Brexit won't just hit the UK.
Many of the places it will affect the worst did not choose it.
I get Brexiters don't care about me, but is everyone really OK with the fact that this will seriously impact on all our neighbours too?
We're not just shitting our own bed in protest here
Maybe I'm wrong but I do not want to believe that enough people were aware of this + all the other things that voting Leave would mean.
This is why I want #EUref2
I don't #RespectTheResult - because I #RespectTheRules & informed Democracy
#VoteLeaveCheated #VoteLeaveBrokeTheLaw
Read 4 tweets
Aug 18, 2018
I'm supposed to be in #AltUK for a couple of weeks.
I'm losing my hope along with my sleep and my sight.
Quite exhausted.
Much love to @spaceangel1964 who I met at the start when we were all shell-shocked staggering sucker-punched & has fought so hard to put the brakes on Brexit
@spaceangel1964 Bannon is Brexit
Trump is Brexit
Putin is Brexit
Johnson is Brexit
Farage is Brexit
Banks is Brexit
Rees-Mogg is Brexit

Is that who you are?
#FinalSay
@spaceangel1964 Please help to put the brakes on Brexit, before it's too late to steer away from the iceberg ahead without scuppering the ship

We need change but not for the worse

Let's Not Leave
Brexit is a bad decision
We need #FinalSay on our shared future or we'll never be a United Kingdom
Read 5 tweets
Aug 14, 2018
Just met this cute little one in the bathroom. Have installed it in the shed because, rats aside, I am a softy for Nature.
Its offspring will worship me as a God.

(Or maybe it will be dead from shock before dawn)
(Should probably explain that this is the downstairs toilet which is a glorified drafty outhouse)
Opened my back door to put out some recycling & it was sat there waiting to come back in the house.
Told it very gently to get back to the shed. Wouldn't budge.
Sat down. Stroked its head. Didn't move. Picked it up & took it back to the shed.
Quite freaked out by friendly mouse.
Read 4 tweets
Jul 17, 2018
Is there an official list of all the times the Leave campaign lied cheated / broke the law? It's a busy day but I could have a go at this as I get time... (thread)
#CrookedVoteLeave
11 MAY 2016 Electoral Commission struck off 11 pro-Brexit campaign "Grassroots Out" groups from their official register of EU Referendum campaigners after it was discovered that they shared the same address, Lysander House in Bristol (= Arron Banks)
telegraph.co.uk/news/2016/05/1…
May 2016 Better for the Country ltd (aka Leave.EU) fined for sending 500K pro-Brexit text messages to customers without consent.
itv.com/news/2016-05-1…
Read 30 tweets

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