Consultants call on government for Brexit clarity

Leading consultants have joined a call from the professional services industry for government to provide greater clarity around Brexit.

In a letter to Prime Minister Theresa May the Professional and Business Services Council (PBSC) called on the government to firm up details around Brexit that are causing uncertainty.

Representatives Aecom, Arup, Royal Institute of British Architects and JLL were all among the 42 signatories to the letter.

The PBSC wrote: “The EU has the balance of trade in goods in its favour and it is understandable that they will seek to prioritise it in the negotiations.

“However, the UK needs to get the right deal on professional and other services given our relative strengths and current competitive position.”

The trade body made seven specific requests, including a call for professional qualifications, products and operating licences to be recognised across both the UK and EU.

It also said regulatory frameworks and regulators, from data protection to audiovisual media policy laws to statutory audits, needed to be mutually recognised.

The PBSC also said it was necessary for judgements to be mutually recognised so deals across EU27 countries can proceed with legal certainty.

The ability of service providers to fly-in fly-out to facilitate advice across the EU27 and trade across Europe was also a priority for the PBSC.

Reducing uncertainty through any transition period was also flagged as a matter of high importance, while continued cooperation in areas that facilitate trade, such as data sharing, was labelled as necessary for the sector.

The ability to educate and recruit the best talent from overseas, whether from the EU or beyond was also labelled as a key concern.