UNTHA UK’s Marcus Brew reacts to news that the UK is to leave the EU. We now need stability, he says, it is not the time to panic, and we must put our faith in those that can, and will, ensure the resource agenda regains its momentum…
It is with a heavy heart that I offer comment on the UK’s majority decision to leave the European Union. After so much anticipation and debate, the outcome is, in all honesty, not what I expected. But the public has spoken and we must now consider ‘what next?’
Political persuasion aside we must focus on stability. This is not the time to panic. Those of us in business today are here because we have survived change before. We emerged from the catastrophic crash of 2008 stronger, fitter and more determined. The deep recession forced us all to think smarter, work more efficiently and heighten our robustness to factors beyond our control.
We are part of a global brand, for example, and in recent years, we have become a much tighter-knit team with knowledge, innovation and progress being fuelled from all parts of the world. We collaborate, with our colleagues, peers and industry domestically and on an international level. And that collaboration is not about to stop.
As an industry we deal with change all the time and, whilst this is perhaps one of the biggest to arise in modern British history, we’re definitely equipped to tackle it.
In truth, the Government’s position on the environment has been pretty insipid to date, to say the least. It is therefore highly unlikely that sustainability-related legislation will be anywhere near a priority in these initial stages of renegotiation. We must therefore capitalise on at least one thing remaining fairly constant for the time being, whilst we all plan for the future.
There are pioneers in this industry who can – and will – ensure the resource agenda maintains momentum. Both widely known and lesser-recognised brands have developed products, systems and processes that have gradually changed the way we think about ‘waste’. In many instances they’ve done that with little help or influence from a Government level.
So let’s crack on. I think we can rest assured in the capabilities of Mark Carney, Governor of the Bank of England, who I believe is the best person to steady the financial market moving forward. Whilst he does that, we must focus on continued progress and the environmental and commercial benefits this brings.
Things are changing all the time so these words may already be out of date. I’ll therefore conclude by saying, is this what we wanted? No. Is it something we can emerge from stronger? Absolutely.
Marcus Brew is managing director of industrial shredder specialist UNTHA UK.
