Chartered Insurance Institute responds to Theresa May's Brexit speech today
CII Managing Director of Engagement, Keith Richards responds to the Prime Minister's Brexit speech.
Our report published today warns of a widening wall of nervousness forming among businesses and professionals on the impact of leaving the EU. Economic confidence across the insurance profession is at its lowest level since 2011 and nearly half (48%) of those working in insurance expect the economy to deteriorate in 2017.
Today’s speech by the Prime Minister about forging a new UK-EU partnership put “building certainty where we can" as principle number 1, we think her final objective of asking for a ‘phased implementation’ period following negotiations seems to partly deliver that.
Although the Government has not offered the defined transitional period that we were asking for, it has acknowledged the risk of an economic and legal “cliff edge” and the impact it could have, and proposed a “phased period of implementation” to give firms that much needed breathing space to consider what the new EU-UK partnership could mean for them. However she neglected to mention anything about time limits.
On balance Theresa May’s speech today seems to be a step in the right direction to offer the market much of the certainty she seems to hold dear.
