Quick links: NewsBiscuit Home • Chat Room • Writers' Room • Top Ten
Those Brexit Dividends just keep rolling in. Or not.
(164 posts) (15 voices)
-
I'll try to keep a running tally of proven "dis-benefits".
Who would like to keep a running tally of proven "benefits" - Titus? ID? You are probably both best-placed for this. Concrete examples only - jobs gained, increased profits, less paperwork, less friction for people and goods, that sort of thing.
Oh, and, good luck.
Posted 1 month ago # -
New import duties and paperwork
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-55734277
I guess the counter argument is that EU public will have the same problem. Except, that they have 26 other countries to buy from without duties & paperwork, and we've even lost Northern Ireland - part of our own country! Part of the benefit of having a free market - more choice, less tax, less paperwork
Oh, and wait for the supply chain problems to become apparent for absolutely everything that's manufactured - which includes everything you can see while reading this
Posted 1 month ago # -
Posted 1 month ago #
-
No-one seems to have considered European multinationals in any of this. I work for an Italian-owned one. We have apparently formed a Brexit committee comprising members from each of the divisions to try to work out how best to handle things. I'm sure we won't have to pass on the additional costs to our customers of running this committee of managers and lawyers doing stuff that they didn't have to do pre-Brexit.
Free movement across the EU allowed us to have apprentices from Italy and Poland for example working in the UK for a month or two, and ours gained similar experience of working abroad temporarily. Now they will need visas to do so. Maybe the company will be happy to do all the extra admin to allow it to continue but I have my doubts.
This amused me though. After the transition period ends, the EU Registration, Evaluation, Authorisation and Restriction of Chemicals (REACH) Regulation will be brought into UK law. This will create British REACH (BREACH). They didn't think that acronym through, did they?
Posted 1 month ago # -
I found a Brexit achievement !!!
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-55757930Nissan has (thankfully) decided to stay where they are in the NE - so the achievement is that nothing much is changing. Funny sort of achievement, really, more of a business tactic to get Govt money
I'm sure it's got nothing to do with the £61 million bribe
https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2019/feb/04/government-letter-to-nissan-reveals-brexit-promise-to-carmarkers.. reducing workers entitlements
https://unitetheunion.org/news-events/news/2020/july/sunderland-pensions-protest-over-nissan-s-disdain-for-workers.. anticipating cheaper labour costs because of Brexit & Covid
.. the massive costs of relocating to the EU
.. and of course the dependency on the Chinese-owned Envision battery factory, which I assume is sponsored by the Govt as part of their CC plans. The business objective here is for the cars to continue to qualify for zero EU tariffs. The political objective & timing is to get NE England support & desperate evidence that Brexit is a success
The battery factory is obviously great news, but the timing of the announcement is very suspicious, to bring rare good news just after Brexit
PS
I just realised who else gains - the Chinese, who can threaten withdrawal at little cost, but with massive political leverage (ie, unemployment threat). Well done for that, BorisTo call our Govt amateurs would be an insult to amateurs
Posted 1 month ago # -
Thought I'd break my silence briefly to share this message from one of the UK's biggest wine importers:
Although we left with a deal, it has not been the easiest of tasks to decipher what are the actual implications of all the different rules, additional admin charges & implications on labelling.
We now have added admin costs for moving wine between UK and EU. All carriers are increasing their freight charges (some by 700%), there is massive confusion with paperwork (what is needed and who can do it), there is a shortage of available brokers to support the extra admin and there are delays at the ports….and we could carry on and on.
Many hours, days, zooms and conversations have been spent on finding the right solution, finding the right haulier, finding the right agent. But we have got there.Although we have tried to keep any price implications to the absolute minimum, inevitably the increased transport and admin charges are reflected in our 2021 pricing.
Estimates of price increases range from 50p to £2 a bottle.
Small shippers are struggling too. This from my mate and supplier Daniel Lambert:
I haven't bothered ordering anything this week because, to add to the Brexit shit storm, Dorset highways have decided it's a good time to resurface the entire town - during the day - so no delivery vehicles can get within a quarter of a mile of the shop. Surprisingly busy though. All Champagne and hand-rolled cigars. Go figure!
Posted 1 month ago # -
B-J, presumably that only applies to EU sourced wine though? You'll still be able to get me that crate of delicious Gallo Zinfandel you recommended?
Cos my suspicion would be, as the direction of travel for wine sales is predominantly heavily inwards to UK from EU, the transport costs will be sorted very swiftly as long as there is a competitive market for sourcing wine elsewhere
Posted 1 month ago # -
Short term, US and other non-EU importers have massively held back, they foresaw this and have been stockpiling at our expense. One of the larger associations recommended doubling stock for around 5-6 weeks disruption. Whoops! Let’s hope that wasn’t heeded, eh? Mostly they’re worried they won’t get their crates and stuff back. Also they don’t know wait times and don’t want to get held up. When they know they’ll have to start factoring it in - and the cost too.
Then they need to wait to see if they need to restructure (costly). Not too many options for wine, as they apparently need deep dock and good access, delays will have to be factored in mid-term, maybe forever.
£650m of the £3.2b of wine we import is bottled here and exported, we’re this massive hub for a new-world/EU wine exchange because we drink so much and had great links and no tariffs. Well for all Boris’ bullshit, as well as non-tariff barriers there are tariffs on 3rd country imports, so that trade will go to Germany.
Why’s this important? This reduction in 2-way trade increases our exposure to container traffic imbalance per se, and seasonally as prices have to include sending containers back empty and we’ll be doing more of it. The more the market moves toward new-world wines, the more these costs will increase. On top of the more general increase in transport costs from increased distance to market.
As a small market, recently we’ve seen a reduction in ships to UK ports, favouring bigger ships, less often. Well now we’re an even smaller market as through trade to the EU will be reduced due to trade fetters.
The theory is that in such a case, rather than consolidated hubs to serve us and EU, we’ll be more easily served from smaller warehouses (no-one seems worried we’d end up being served from EU hub) losing some economies of scale. That might change in the long-term, as new-world takes a larger slice, but it’s the medium-term way forward - takes time and investment for new trade routes and freight capacity and they’ll be muscling in on a well entrenched industry, and by the time it changes a lot of the damage to the conditions required to muscle in will already have been done.
Then there’s labelling. 3 months to 2 years (for someone big) to update SKUs. An expensive process, resulting in an increased cost to the exporter forever. Over-sticking in the interim is costly too (Brussels might not even allow it, so uk would then shoulder that).
Advantage to new-world wines (there’s a clear advantage to home grown wines, but the industry is so small it hardly makes a ripple) will be mostly from fine profit margin stuff, that they can scrape from the imposition of non-tariff barriers on the EU in comparison to their own as tariffs were pretty low on non-EU wines anyway, e.g. low alcohol wines will get 13p a litre off with an FTA. Not too much of a deal as EU only gets 6p anyway, so 7p early advantage and 7p down in the long run, but after routes established.
But wine importers are more worried about post Brexit incomes, and mostly worried about the pound, which eclipses everything.
This all will mean more expensive wine all round, the collapse of UK through-trade, and a decrease in consumption. I suppose it makes sense, it’s is the first FTA in the world designed to increase barriers to trade.
Bravo, Brexiters.
Posted 1 month ago # -
BBC news reporting on EU vaccine supply
Contraction of deliveries reducing EU capacity further as still not approved AstraZenecca/Oxford vaccine.
Not an acceptable argument to say it's so well under control in EU countries that don't need to rush either, it seems, as death rates rise and lockdowns/curfews increased/extended.
Strong desire for urgent delivery, not being achieved.Posted 1 month ago # -
Cheshire Cheese Company
Posted 1 month ago # -
B-J, presumably that only applies to EU sourced wine though?
France, Italy and Spain alone produces 50% of the world's wines. Mainly from small family growers. Continental Europe as a whole produces 80%.
Have a look at the split in your local Tesco. You would think that Australia, SA and California made the most. They produce most of the bulk industrial stuff.
Choice and quality will be reduced as artisanal products will be more heavily effected in favour of mass production. It's just another boost in the race to the bottom.By the way I can recommend Gallo Zin as an accompaniment to chlorinated, fried chicken pustules.
Posted 1 month ago # -
Not sure about this one, but I have suspicions:
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-cumbria-55561852As this was announced on 6th Jan, does this look like the first of many initiatives that disregards our obligations against Climate Change?
We're no longer covered by EU legislation & policies, of course
Expert opinion, Al ?
Posted 1 month ago # -
Another perspective. Well worth reading the whole diatribe by Fish ( front man of rock group Marillion). I’m not a great fan of his music but he writes well
Posted 1 month ago # -
I have heard that some people actually have doubts the overwhelming benefits of Brexit.
I am shocked! Why do shadowy people keep their thoughts to themselves? Why do these folk keep their misgivings so secret? Why don't they proclaim their concerns, openly and loudly?
I can't understand why they don't they just go on and on and on,
tediouslyrelentlessly and repeatedly, about their fears, worries and warnings.Doing that will obviously make all the difference, will inevitably save the country immediately, totally cure all the problems, and really absolutely won't piss off all the rest of us in the slightest, honestly.
Posted 1 month ago # -
Titus, you misunderstand. This thread is about what's happened, not what might happen. Do keep up
Department for International Trade advises companies affected by Brexit to set up in the EU
Posted 1 month ago # -
This thread is about what's happened, not what might happen.
Ah, right!
It rained last week. That's simply not acceptable. Who do I complain to, please? Will it unrain if I keep moaning for long enough?
I used to be puzzled why Remainians were frequently to as 'remoaners'. Now, I understand. Some people might find this tedious; fortunately, I just find it amusing. Keep it up, folks - I need some entertainment, huddled indoors sheltering from bubonic plague and all this crappy weather!
Posted 1 month ago # -
It rained last week. That's simply not acceptable. Who do I complain to, please? Will it unrain if I keep moaning for long enough?
Seriously pathetic.
So let's pick a couple of groups to see if they are likely to be personally affected by Brexit. We'll start by confining it to Brexiteers who are either 1) Vets whose trade is perforce local and 2) Retired with a comfortable income from investments de-risked by global spread, and, of course, telling everyone else to "suck it up and wait for 10 - 20 years and it might be better". Anyone out there?
We'll move onto those actually impacted at the moment after the first group come up with their stunning "I'm all right Jack" insights.
Posted 1 month ago # -
Posted 1 month ago #
-
You clearly don't understand. When it rains, things get wet. This is simply not acceptable. And I'm going to go on and on and on about it until rain stops getting thing wet, because I enjoy utterly wasting my time and boring the bolloscks of anyone daft enough to keep listening to me.
Posted 1 month ago # -
They didn't say it was going to rain, or that that would make things get wet.
This is simply not acceptable. And I'm going to go on and on and on about it until rain stops getting thing wet, because I enjoy utterly wasting my time and boring the bolloscks of anyone daft enough to keep listening to me.
Posted 1 month ago # -
Bored now are we? Capricious lot, you Brexiters.
At least the government’s latest ad campaign is reflecting our strengths post Brexit: https://mobile.twitter.com/jonworth/status/1353315678619660290/photo/1
Posted 1 month ago # -
The key sentence from that, Al, is "He describes his company as part of the “engine room” of the British economy – one of the almost 6 million UK small businesses (defined as those employing less than 50 people) – that account for most of the UK’s GDP"
Most of these businesses will have EU supply chains - either from or to the EU
I doubt Titus would make his childish "rain" joke to the owners of those small businesses face-to-face
Bigger companies will have more buffer to the financial trauma - loans, part stocks, etc. It'll take longer for them to be affected, with sporadic job losses when they can't see a way through. When the massive teething problems are eventually resolved (if ever), it'll become clearer what ongoing damage will look like
And that will affect share prices, and maybe that will wake Titus from his senile slumber
Posted 1 month ago #
Reply »
You must log in to post.