Leading UK business groups have expressed fury at the government over what they see as ministers’ failure to consult companies over Britain’s post-Brexit relationship with the EU.
Corporate leaders are particularly concerned that their views have not been sought before the government’s planned white paper on the detailed relationship between the UK and the EU once Britain leaves the bloc.
“There has been zero formal consultation with business on the content [of the white paper],” said one leading business group representative.
Business groups’ complaints highlight their growing frustration both with the stasis of the Brexit negotiations between the UK and the EU and the divisions at the top of Theresa May’s government. [...]
Hobbled by lack of detail
“We’re playing economics, [the politicians] are playing politics,” said Paul Drechsler, president of the CBI, the employers’ organisation. “Is it any wonder that in the world of business we’re frustrated, we’re angry.”
“We’re not . . . seeing detailed asks from the government in terms of the [Brexit] white paper,” said Catherine McGuinness, chair of the policy and resources committee at the City of London Corporation, the local authority that oversees the capital’s financial district.
One business group representative said he suspected the reason his organisation had not been consulted on the Brexit white paper was because the Department for Exiting the EU was worried about leaks and “doesn’t want us to see the gigantic gaps where the government doesn’t have a settled position”.
“Right now businesses’ greatest frustration is with the UK government for its inability to put forward clear positions — because that means they can’t plan for the future,” said Adam Marshall, director-general of the British Chambers of Commerce. [...]
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