REGULAR
Are You In Or Out?
As the EU referendum debate gets into full swing, resident columnist here at TC and PR and Media Manger for the British Cleaning Council, Lee Baker, looks at the possible implications for the cleaning industry.
The political landscape is now taking shape after the recent General Election, and the issue of Britain’s future in Europe has taken centre stage.
The government is committed to holding an in/out EU referendum before the end of 2017, but many are predicting it will happen a lot sooner than that.
It will be the most important national referendum for a generation, and the outcome will affect the UK, and indeed the rest of Europe for many decades.
The view of British businesses will form a key part of the debate, and it is something the UK cleaning sector should take a keen interest in, as there are deep bonds with Europe right across the cleaning industry.
Recently the British Cleaning Council took the decision to join the European Federation of Cleaning Industries (EFCI). The Council felt that by getting closer to the decision making process in Europe, it would be better able to influence policy that affected the UK.
The message from UK business leaders is broadly the same; that the UK is better served by being at the table when the big decisions are made.
24
CBI Director General John Cridland said: “Britain remaining a full member of the European Union is ‘fundamental’ to the UK’s economic success.” He added that being in the EU supports jobs, drives growth and boosts international competitiveness.
The recent Cleaning Show at the Excel in London’s Docklands attracted a lot of visitors from Europe and strengthened the potential gateway into that huge market. The ISSA/INTERCLEAN show held in Amsterdam is another ‘diary must’ for most cleaning professionals. Would EU withdrawal affect events like these?
Immigration is one of the issues that has ignited the whole EU firestorm, and has led to UKIP stealing many former Labour voters. In the recent election campaign then-Labour leader, Ed Milliband was forced to concede that his government in 2004 had under estimated the flow of immigration from eastern Europe.
But although EU migration was higher than expected, and has caused some social issues, illegal immigration from outside the EU is more of a problem for
the UK, and EU migrants are actually net contributors to the UK economy.
Former BCC Chairman, Doug Cooke believes that his firm, Principle Cleaning, has benefited enormously from EU migration. He feels they are extremely good workers, who are adaptable and tend to fit in well. He thinks the cleaning sector would miss this vital labour supply if the immigration tap from the EU was suddenly curtailed.
Quite often missing from this debate is the fact that our country’s average age is rising each year, and there are now more people over the age of 65 than under the age of 16, so our future prosperity could actually depend on young migrant labour.
Now we are having this referendum it’s important that all voices are heard. It would be hugely beneficial to hear the views of cleaning professionals, to get their take on whether full EU withdrawal, or a reformed EU agreement is the best path to take.
www.domesticcleaningalliance.co.uk www.britishcleaningcouncil.org
www.tomorrowscleaning.com
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62 |
Page 63 |
Page 64 |
Page 65 |
Page 66 |
Page 67 |
Page 68 |
Page 69 |
Page 70 |
Page 71 |
Page 72 |
Page 73 |
Page 74 |
Page 75 |
Page 76 |
Page 77 |
Page 78