Today, Norfolk Chambers held a working lunch with the Bank of England at the Chambers offices in Norwich. Patrick Campbell, East of England Agent for the Bank of England heard from a range of Norfolk businesses about their thoughts on the state of the Norfolk economy and the challenges being faced due to the continued uncertainty of Brexit.
Key amongst the Brexit challenges were those operating ‘just in time’ supply chains and the impact of delays in importing/exporting goods to meet it; the potential of future tariffs on raw materials; and European partners being unwilling to negotiate long term contracts.
Also up for discussion was the impact of economic uncertainty on the labour market and how the Living Wage increases and auto enrolment of pensions have affected salary levels in our region. Other challenges noted were access to a skilled workforce.
