Opinion CHAMBER LINK


The Official Publication of Greater Birmingham Chambers of commerce


Editor’s View


By John Lamb


By the end of this month it all be over. The nation will have decided whether to remain part of the EU or not. In the event of victory for the Brexiters, there


is the prospect of Boris Johnson occupying Downing Street as PM and a President Donald Trump in the White House. After Leicester City, who would bet against it? Our story on a British Chambers survey in this


Sutton Coldfield


Chamber of Commerce


edition says the West Midlands is the UK’s most euro-sceptic region (see page 10) and points to the prospect of the referendum coming out in favour of leaving Brussels.


‘Apart from a dipping in confidence while the uncertainty remains, there has been little impact on business in the build up to the vote’


Front cover Mohammed Ahmed, owner of Al Frash restaurant See page 7


Editor John Lamb 0121 607 1781, 0797 1144064 j.lamb@birmingham-chamber.com


You can now read the latest issue of CHAMBERLINK and view back issues online at: www.greaterbirminghamchambers.com


The consequences for UK businesses would


present an enormous upheaval and a significant impact on their operations. While London, Northern Ireland and Scotland


were the most pro-EU regions in the UK, in the West Midlands nearly half of business were in favour of leaving. According to the survey, if the EU referendum


was held tomorrow, 45.2 per cent of West Midlands businesses would vote to stay in the EU, whilst almost as many (44.8 per cent) would vote to leave. A number of respondents, 9.7 per cent, were undecided. Overall, 54 per cent of UK businesspeople say


Published by


they will vote to remain, with 37 per cent voting to leave. However, the ‘leave’ vote is now seven


per cent higher than it was in the last British Chambers’ survey, which was conducted in February. London, Northern Ireland and Scotland are the


most pro-EU regions in the UK. Size has been a big factor when it comes to


what small businesses think and their attitude may be a big factor in the vote with many of them favouring Brexit. This has all led to the race for the “business vote” tightening with the gap narrowing week by week. Apart from a dipping in confidence while the


uncertainty remains, there has been little impact on business in the build up to the vote on 23 June. But they all expect significant impacts if the vote is to leave. There has clearly been a drift against the


remain campaign in the closing months of the campaign and the race for the business vote has clearly tightened. This will be an important factor in the final showdown. The survey also explored how well business


people feel that they understand the long term business implications of the referendum and the Chamber has been on a mission to explain the issues with events addressing key questions. There is one to go with the Chamber holding a


‘Global Perspectives on the EU Referendum’ event on 8 June at the offices of Squire Patton Boggs. The event was looking at how businesses and investors outside of the UK view the referendum debate and how a ‘Brexit’ might – or might not – impact on trade. The Chamber has also created a number of EU


referendum briefing papers available on its website (www.greaterbirminghamchambers.com) But after that it will be down to you…


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CHAMBERLINK is produced on behalf of Greater Birmingham Chambers of Commerce by Kemps Publishing Ltd and is distributed to members without charge. The Chambers and the publisher are committed to achieving the highest quality standards. While every care has been taken to ensure that the information it contains is accurate, neither the Chambers nor the publisher can accept any responsibility for any omission or inaccuracies that might arise. Views expressed in the magazine are not necessarily those of the Chambers. This publication (or any part thereof) may not be reproduced, transmitted or stored in print or electronic format without prior written permission of Kemps Publishing Ltd.


4 CHAMBERLINK June 2016


Birmingham Chamber Patrons


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