Third of British businesses to move abroad due to Brexit woes

According to a survey conducted by the Institute of Directors (IoD), nearly a third of British businesses could move operations abroad due to Brexit.

The survey by the IoD surveyed 1,200 senior businessmen and women, the survey found that 13% has relocation plans and 13% were considering moving, small firms are twice as likely to move.

Edwin Morgan, interim director general of the Institute of Directors said, “Change is a necessary and often positive part of doing business, but the unavoidable disruption and increased trade barriers that no deal would bring are entirely unproductive.

“While the actions of big companies have been making headlines, these figures suggest that smaller enterprises are increasingly considering taking the serious step of moving some operations abroad.

“For these firms, typically with tighter resources, to be thinking about such a costly course of action makes clear the precarious position they are in.”

A government spokesman said to the Standard, “We want to protect jobs and the economy as well as provide certainty for businesses and individuals as we leave the EU. The best way to do this is to leave with a deal, and that’s what we’re focused on doing.

“The strong economic foundations we are putting in place through our modern Industrial Strategy are part of the reason the UK was recently rated the best place in the world for business, and saw more than £100 billion of Foreign Direct Investment in the last three years, more than France and Germany combined.”