‘Morequestionsthan answers’

The current Brexit deal still has more questions than answers for local businesses, the chairman of leading business organisation Institute of Directors Northern Ireland has stated.
By The Newsroom
Published 25th Oct 2019, 15:36 BST
Gordon Milligan, IoD NI Chairman, left, joins Dr Katy Hayward, QUB, and Frankie Devlin, KPMG at the business organisations Meet the Experts lunch held at Hilton Belfast.Gordon Milligan, IoD NI Chairman, left, joins Dr Katy Hayward, QUB, and Frankie Devlin, KPMG at the business organisations Meet the Experts lunch held at Hilton Belfast.
Gordon Milligan, IoD NI Chairman, left, joins Dr Katy Hayward, QUB, and Frankie Devlin, KPMG at the business organisations Meet the Experts lunch held at Hilton Belfast.

Gordon Milligan was addressing more than 140 delegates at a major lunch event organised by the business body in Belfast.

Mr. Milligan said: “The current deal agreed by Boris Johnson, that has seen the removal of the Northern Ireland backstop, raises more questions than answers.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

“The government’s own impact assessment outlines the increasing burden of red tape and bureaucracy that could be placed on local businesses, especially around new customs requirements. That is deeply concerning.

“And it remains unclear whether Northern Ireland will benefit from any future EU or UK trade agreements.

“There is a tremendous desire among the local business community to understand the detail in all of this, and a huge feeling of uncertainty about what any future divergence between Northern Ireland and Great Britain will mean.

The ‘Meet the Experts’ lunch at the Hilton Hotel Belfast, formed part of the IoD’s ‘Brexit Ready’ NI initiative, a major free advice service for members and non-members running throughout October.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The event also heard from the IoD’s head of EU and Trade Policy Allie Renison and Dr Katy Hayward, Queen’s University, Belfast.

A webinar on trades, customs andVAT will be broadcast on October 29 from 12.30pm-1.30pm.

Related topics:Northern IrelandBrexitBoris Johnson