Post-Brexit UK: The Consequences Faced by the British Economy
In January of 2020, the Parliament of the United Kingdom ratified the withdrawal agreement that allowed the country to conclude its ties with the European Union. The regional union currently comprises 27 European states and is aimed towards enhancing regional, political, and economic integration. The UK was the first sovereign country to leave the EU, creating serious implications regarding their economic relations with other countries both in the bloc and out of the bloc alike.
The prevailing argument in favor of Brexit was that such a regulatory break would allow the UK to regain national sovereignty. UK Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, has said that this movement would lead to a “Global Britain,” which would foster more agile ties with other democratic countries such as the United States, Australia, India, and South Korea. That glamorized vision of Brexit, however, has proven to be far from reality.
Opponents of Brexit preemptively feared that moving forward with it would incite violent nationalism, chaos at the border, and food shortages. In addition to the reemergence of sectarian strife between Northern Ireland and the UK, one of the most obvious consequences of the big dispensation is the massive labor crisis within the United Kingdom.
The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has already caused thousands of workers to stay home. This public health crisis, coupled with a new immigration policy under Brexit, has plunged the British economy into a decline.
Said plunge becomes apparent by the lack of truck drivers, which has contributed to the shortage of supplies in the United Kingdom. Wage demands have been on the rise as well as inflation. The United Kingdom already has lost 100,000 truck drivers, 20,000 of which were European Union Nationals who left the United Kingdom following Brexit.
As the holidays approach, many within the UK may be left without their staple dishes. According to the British Poultry Council, national chicken production in the UK has been scaled back by 10 percent and 16 percent of jobs within the industry are left vacant. This past September, the Bank of England reported that CPI inflation was estimated to rise about 4 percent this year.
Supply chain issues are also displayed across McDonald's restaurants across the UK. Because of the combination between the pandemic and Brexit, McDonald’s has been forced to stop selling bottled drinks and milkshakes. Similarly, Nando’s was recently left with no other choice but to close over forty of their locations due to the supply shortage in Peri Peri chicken. Fast food places like McDonald’s and Nando’s were heavily reliant upon cheap labor through the exploitation of EU migrants.
The current economic crisis in the United Kingdom has uncovered just how dependent the British economy has been upon seasonal EU workers thus far.
Unfortunately, there has been no easy solution to this problem. Employers are unable to hire workers from the European Union due to the government’s imposition of tight immigration laws after Brexit. The UK has become a less welcoming environment for EU workers. Furthermore, Boris Johnson has adamantly maintained his position that the UK would not go back to the pre-Brexit model of “low wages, low skills, supported by uncontrolled immigration.”
The best long- term solution would be to train British truck drivers and provide them with higher wages, but currently speaking, it is not possible for wages to increase for workers who are not even there to begin with. To try and alleviate the issue, the UK has already issued 5,000 short-term worker visas for truck drivers, however, a three- month visa is not a compelling enough incentive to bring in overseas workers and this method will not solve the underlying issues.
Alternatively, the UK must work to modernize its immigration process. In order to maintain innovation, stay competitive in the global economy, and meet the needs of those living within the UK, the British government should utilize global talent in a non-exploitative manner, that is, pay better wages and offer better training to employees.
This solution does not mean that the UK must rejoin the EU, rather, the government should collaborate with other countries to allow workers to smoothly cross the border. With the introduction of more people into the workforce, supply chains are bound to naturally sit at healthier levels. A thought- out immigration process through intergovernmental collaboration and negotiation does not equate to the unorganized immigration that Boris Johnson fears.
At the heart of this discussion, it becomes clear that intervention on some level is needed in order to enhance the quality of human life and boost the overall condition of the UK.
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