Moreover, the prospect of politicians trying to negotiate detailed trade deals sector by sector over the next decade is ‘chilling’, according to the first of a three-part report by the firm on international insurance, ‘Informed Insurance 2019/20’, published last week.
Brexit has forced insurers and brokers to decide which clients and contracts to service from within the EU27 and where to base the operations that service that business, and they have proceeded on the assumption there will be no deal, the report says. Paris, Frankfurt and Malta have worked hard to attract business. Dublin has been a key destination, but its success in attracting financial businesses has made it hard to find accommodation.
Insurers are frustrated that much of the political debate has focused on the customs union, which only covers trade in goods (about 15% of the UK’s GDP) and not services. Dr Alexandra von Westernhagen, a specialist in EU competition law at DAC Beachcroft in London, says in the report: ‘No-one is really talking about remaining in the internal market, which would be the prerequisite for financial services to remain trading on the current basis with full passporting rights.’
The report also highlights that the 2018 employment tribunal statistics showed a 56% rise in UK pregnancy discrimination claims. DAC Beachcroft partner Louise Bloomfield said: ‘Employees appear to be much more confident in challenging what is seen as unacceptable behaviour in the workplace.’
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