Business News Round Up (25/06/2021)
Brexit vote cost the UK economy five years says chief economist
The UK Chief Economist at commercial property specialist Colliers has highlighted how the economy lost five years of momentum as a result of the political logjam that followed the referendum result that led to Brexit. In a market overview for the fifth anniversary of the 52 per cent vote in favour of leaving the EU, which was announced on Friday 24 June 2016, Dr Walter Boettcher said: “In my mind, Brexit was flawed, not necessarily in its conception (compelling pros and cons can be argued), but by implementation with less than a referendum supermajority. “The political logjam that followed was inevitable and cost the UK five valuable years. The time may have been better spent entrenching recovery from the Global Financial Crisis by encouraging public and private investment across the UK.”
Material footprint in Scotland 38 per cent higher than global average
Zero Waste Scotland has published a new landmark report today that reveals the size of Scotland’s consumption footprint for the first time. The Scottish Material Flow Accounts provides insight into the material usage of the nation. It revealed that Scotland’s raw material consumption per capita, also known as a material footprint, was 18.4 tonnes in 2017 – 38% higher than the global average. This is the equivalent to each person in Scotland using their body weight in material every 1.4 days. Most experts agree that a material footprint of approximately 8 tonnes per capita is a sustainable and achievable benchmark, without compromising well-being or quality of life. The analysis quantifies the materials that are being extracted from Scotland’s natural environment every year, as well as those which are imported, exported, and wasted. 79% of physical material exports are fossil fuels, with the report stating that imports increase by 193% and exports rise by 51% when raw material extracts are considered.
https://resource.co/article/material-footprint-scotland-38-cent-higher-global-average
UK workers demand economic recovery to be built on better internet access
Cisco announces index of broadband services in the UK and reveals lead role in government’s levelling-up initiative designed to help close the digital divide. As the UK economy emerges from the Covid-driven slowdown and businesses begin to reopen, a strong majority of workers think the post-pandemic recovery must be built on better internet access, says the inaugural Cisco Broadband Index. The study, conducted by independent research specialist Censuswide, surveyed 2,000 employees in the UK, asking workers about their current home broadband use patterns, changes they anticipate in the near future and emerging expectations. The top-line finding of the Cisco Broadband Index was that while people’s working lives were more connected than ever before, concern was rising over the accessibility of internet services, which nearly 70% of UK workers believe will underpin economic growth. Just over half (54%) of the workers surveyed spent seven hours a day online and two-fifths said they had missed out on critical services such as healthcare or education during lockdowns because of connectivity issues. Two-thirds of workers saw the affordability of broadband as prohibitive to low-income households and three-quarters believed they would not return to their pre-pandemic levels of home internet use.
The ‘complicated’ road to Scottish recovery
The outlook for Scotland’s economic recovery from the coronavirus crisis is “complicated”, according to a new report from law firm CMS. While there is increasing optimism due to the progress of the country’s vaccination programme, policymakers still have several critical concerns to address. Chief among them are the effects the pandemic has had on the tourism industry – a key contributor to Scotland’s GDP – which has accelerated structural changes in the retail sector that are “profoundly impacting the potential health and vitality of towns and cities”. Jobs will be the key concern, as the tourism sector provided 8.8% of total employment in 2019 – a figure that will have surely fallen since last March, with the younger generations more affected than most. In 2019, visitor spending totalled £11.5bn, but those visits declined by 78% during 2020, with spending down by around 85%. Certain regions are also likely to be disproportionately hit, with £25m of Scottish Government support and the Scottish Tourism Emergency Response Group set up to tackle the issues.
https://www.insider.co.uk/sponsored/complicated-road-scottish-recovery-24394975