EU exit impact on place: Call for information

In our discussions with government, we have emphasised that the consequences of exiting the EU and access to the single market are likely to impact on places across the country differently and that this needs to be factored into wider discussions. Colleagues in the Department for Communities and Local Government (DCLG), the Department for Exiting the European Union (DExEU) and the Cabinet Office have been receptive to this idea, and working together we have identified some key areas where it would be helpful to feed further analysis from local authorities about the place-based impact of exiting the EU into government discussions. Of particular interest is any analysis that quantifies the impact of exiting the EU either on local economies or local government services; however, we also welcome analysis based on more anecdotal evidence, such as discussions with businesses and other local partners. 

We are aware that councils and Local Enterprise Partnerships are already working with their local communities, universities and businesses to assess how to make the most of any opportunities associated with and mitigate any risks of exiting the EU at a local level, and we have already received helpful information from a number of local authorities on such matters. In light of our discussions with government, we would be interested to hear how you anticipate exiting the EU will affect your local place in terms of:

1.    Local growth

• Have you identified opportunities associated with existing the EU and how to take advantage of these?
• Are there likely to be any significant changes to the labour market in your local area as a consequence of exiting the EU? What are the opportunities and/or risks associated with these changes?
• Are there likely to be any significant impacts on particular economic sectors in your local area as a consequence of exiting the EU? What are the opportunities and/or risks associated with these impacts?
• Are there likely to be any significant impacts on major companies in your local area as a consequence of exiting the EU? What are the opportunities and/or risks associated with these impacts?
• Are there any particular opportunities and/or risks in your local area from possible changes to the laws governing state aid?

2.    Local public services

Are there particular local public services in your area that are likely to be significantly affected as a consequence of exiting the EU? What are the opportunities and/or risks associated with these changes? Possible sources of opportunity or risk might include:

• changes to the workforce
• changes in demand
• changes to the laws governing procurement

3.    Regional funding

• What are the anticipated effects of shifting away from the existing EU regional aid regime (i.e. European Regional Development Fund (ERDF) and European Social Fund (ESF)) for your local area?
• What are the opportunities and/or risks for your local area associated with possible successor regional aid schemes? 

For each of the above issues, we are looking for a flavour of the potential impact in your local area. Where possible, it would be helpful to include information on the scale of each issue, highlighting any disproportionate opportunities and/or risks. We would also be interested to hear about any opportunities and/or risks that are not captured by the above list and should be explored - particularly when these are bespoke to your local area.

All information can be submitted to brexit@local.gov.uk.

In addition to feeding this information into relevant government departments, we are also committed to providing an online hub for place-based information about the impact of exiting the EU. Depending on the nature of the information we receive, this may be most effective if made publicly accessible. As such, it would be much appreciated if you could please indicate in your covering email if you do not want your local assessments made publicly available.

Many thanks in advance for your help with this important work.

Best wishes,