Business preparedness for Brexit remains low and an "acceleration in contingency planning" is needed, the Minister for Business, Enterprise and Innovation, Heather Humphreys, has said after her department launched a survey on the matter.
The survey, carried out by Behaviour and Attitudes (B&A) on behalf of the Department of Business, Enterprise and Innovation, found that just over one quarter of businesses have a plan in place to deal with Brexit.
Those businesses that expect to be heavily affected by Brexit were, however, more proactive, the survey shows. Some 41 per cent of medium-size businesses have a plan in place, while 39 per cent of businesses with imports or exports to the UK are prepared.
Impact
While preparedness is increasing, so too is the volume of businesses that suggest Brexit isn’t having an impact. Over half, or 56 per cent, of small and medium enterprises say Brexit isn’t having an impact, up from 48 per cent in the last survey.
“Without a doubt, the figures are going in the right direction, but we need to see an acceleration in contingency planning in the coming months,” said Ms Humphreys. “Notwithstanding the uncertainty that comes with Brexit, it is crucial that affected businesses without a plan urgently put one in place.”
Ms Humphreys’ warning came as 72 per cent of businesses say they have no plan in place, despite Brexit awareness rising.
Knock-on effect
There was also, however, an increase in the number of companies suggesting that Brexit will have no impact. While 16 per cent expected the departure of the UK to have a “strong impact”, 30 per cent believe it won’t have any knock-on effect for Irish business.
"We know the UK's decision to leave the EU from March 2019 will entail changes to our trading arrangements and may entail new regulatory and other compliance requirements for importers and exporters in particular," said Minister of State Pat Breen. "Government departments, enterprise agencies and regulatory bodies all have dedicated resources available to help business identify the key risk areas for business and on the practical preparatory actions that can be taken over the coming months."
The B&A survey is the third in a series carried out for the department looking at the impact of Brexit. The survey, carried out in June, had a sample size of 546 businesses.
