We have today been advised by the Egyptian-British Chamber of Commercethat new regulations are recently issued by the Egyptian Ministry of Trade and Industry regarding the importation of certain product and goods for the retail market.
Both 991/2015 and 992/2015 Ministerial Decrees are briefly translated, please click here to view, they will also soon be published them on the EBCC website www.theebcc.com along with the original Arabic version.
On the closing day of the government’s consultation on the UK’s future digital strategy (19 January), the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) calls for the government to match the scope and ambition of other countries to create a solid foundation for future business growth.
In a letter signed by all 52 Accredited Chambers across the country to the Culture Secretary, John Whittingdale, the leading business group has highlighted areas where a lack of action is impeding business growth – including mobile coverage, supplier competition, and insufficient broadband coverage and speeds.BCC Director General, John Longworth, presented the letter to the Culture Secretary at a meeting on 14 January.
Unless UK businesses see swift improvements in reliability, speed, coverage and competition, individual companies’ performances – and UK productivity – may be severely affected.
Commenting, John Longworth, Director General of the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC), said:
“The digital world is changing daily, and UK firms have a track record as global innovators and leaders. However, the infrastructure they rely upon is failing to keep pace.
“Britain may lead the world in e-commerce, but many offices, business parks and road and rail routes lack both mobile and broadband connectivity. Unless we set the bar high – and ensure UK companies have access to world-class digital infrastructure – we will be out-competed by others around the globe.
“The UK government must set a far more ambitious digital strategy, starting with an immediate action plan to boost mobile and fibre connections for business. Companies of every size and sector, in every nation and region, are reporting connectivity problems. We need action from ministers, regulators, service providers and businesses themselves if we want to stay competitive in future.”
Specific areas of concern highlighted by the BCC were:
A public consultation has now opened to gather views on a proposed merger of Great Yarmouth College, Lowestoft College and Lowestoft Sixth Form College.
The vision set out by the three colleges is to create a new, three-campus institution, under the name ‘East Coast Colleges Group’. This would see each campus maintain its name, individual strengths and specialisms, but come together under one new, overarching organisation.
This proposed merger is as a result of the three colleges participating in a pioneering area review in 2015. This was designed to identify the opportunities and challenges faced by those delivering post-16 education in the local area and to address ways to protect and enhance the provision available.
The discussions raised through the review have led to the proposal to create a combined college group. It is proposed that the merger would result in the colleges being better equipped to deliver a full range of vocational and traditional academic courses, with integrated degree level opportunities, while maintaining a more solid financial footing at a time when public funding is under increasing pressure.
The overall aim is to preserve and expand the excellent academic offer of Lowestoft Sixth Form College and the much-valued technical and professional education and training of both Lowestoft and Great Yarmouth Colleges. By coming together the colleges will be able to capitalise on their individual strengths and become more resilient, and better able to face the challenges ahead. The attached consultation document sets out in more detail the background to the proposal, the reasons for the merger and the benefits and opportunities available.
They believe this proposal offers Lowestoft and Great Yarmouth a forward-thinking plan which addresses the needs of local students, parents and employers, and which will act as a catalyst for local and regional economic prosperity. Now we would like to give you the opportunity to have your say. We want to work together to shape the best possible future for our colleges, and for all those who depend on them for a great future.
Your views are extremely important to them and will be given full consideration before any final decisions are made by the colleges. They would welcome your responses to the following questions:
Please submit your responses using the online feedback form.
Alternatively you are welcome to email your responses to [email protected] or write to them at: East Coast Colleges Group Consultation, C/O FOUR Agency, Hill House, 20 Hill House Road, Norwich, Norfolk NR1 4BE.
The deadline for responses is 5pm on Friday 19 February 2016.
The UK Government has committed to holding an in-out referendum on Britain’s membership of the European Union (EU) by the end of 2017. In November 2015, Prime Minister David Cameron outlined his proposals for reform in a letter to the President of the European Council Donald Tusk. The four objectives for the Prime Minister’s renegotiation of the UK’s membership of the European Union were:
A response to David Cameron’s letter was received in December. The main sticking point has been opposition from countries including Hungary and Poland to the idea of the four year ban on claiming some UK benefits. The message from the rest of the EU is that there cannot be a policy which discriminates against other EU nationals.
As the Prime Minister tours Europe highlighting Britain’s stance and looking to drum up support from other EU leaders, the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) will be once again polling Chamber members across the UK to find out what the local business communities think about the EU Referendum. This will enable the British Chambers of Commerce to understand business views on reform of the EU, and the UK’s future relationship with the EU. You can have your sayhere.
The results of a previous BCC poll on the EU Referendum, held in August 2015, highlighted that if an in-out referendum were to be held immediately, 63% of businesspeople would vote to remain in the European Union, 27% would vote to leave, and 10% are unsure. Yet fully 50% said their vote could change depending on David Cameron’s renegotiation package.
The survey period is from Monday 25 January 2015 to Thursday 04 February 2015 and the results will be published a few weeks later.
On Thursday 28th January we took over 20 lanes at Hollywood Bowl Norwich for a competitive evening, with 150 members joining us for our annual bowling challenge.
The challenge was even bigger this year as we increased the team sizes to 8 per lane, totalling up some high scores. The evening was filled with plenty of laughter and a relaxed atmosphere for delegates to make new connections.
One of the challenges on the night included Hollywood Bowl’s ‘Pink Pin Challenge’. If the pink pin landed in a lane, the next bowler must bowl a strike to win their team a bottle of Prosecco. In the end two teams walked away with this victory, which also saw Peter Bussey of Anglia Business Cleaning win our ‘Most Stylish Bowler’ award for a tremendous strike!
All the bowling action was followed by an incredible buffet provided by the Hollywood Bowl team, and of course the announcement of our winners…
Taking the Super Bowl Challenge 2016 Trophy back to the office was Tank Replacement Services, with an average score of 119.125 (total score 953). The extra decimal place worked in their favour as team Natwest came close second with an average score of 119 (total score 714).
Tank Replacement Services seemed to have a winning streak however as team member Daniel Copplestone won top score of the night with an overall score of 182!
View our photo gallery from the evening here, and this year you can see your scores on the table below!
Overall the evening was enjoyed by all, with some even staying behind for a few extra bowls. Our fun After Hours Series doesn’t stop here though, coming up we have a Cocktail Evening and a Quiz Night Challenge.
Position: Company: Team Members: Average Score: Total Score: 1 Tank Replacement Services Ltd 8 119.125 953 2 Coutts 6 119 714 3 Hugh J Boswell 8 113.625 909 4 Price Bailey 8 112.125 897 5 Create Consulting (team 1) 5 112 560 6 Lovewell Blake LLP 8 109.125 873 7 Natwest 6 106.833 641 8 Targetfollow Estates 7 106 742 8 Indigo Swan,Mayday Office Equipment Services Ltd andAnglia Business Cleaning 5 106 530 10 Anglian Financial & Investment Planning Ltd, Hugh J Boswell, Barclays and Prior Diesel 8 100.375 803 11 Kent Carlyle Wealth Management 8 100.125 801 12 Larking Gowen andMecca Bingo 5 98.2 491 13 Leathes Prior 8 96.875 775 14 Credo Asset Finance 8 94.25 754 15 MLM 8 93.625 749 16 Howes Percival LLP 8 92.25 738 17 Norfolk County Council 8 86.625 693 18 Finn Geotherm UK Ltd 8 86.125 689 19 Create Consulting (team 2) 5 83 415 20 Cozens-Hardy LLP 8 67.875 543On Tuesday 26th January, over 35 delegates joined us to learn about business opportunities in South East Asia at Holiday Inn Norwich. The venue provided a spacious setting where delegates were able to network over tea & coffee, followed by 3 presentations from expert speakers discussing the key areas of trade in South East Asia; Indonesia, Malaysia, Singapore, Vietnam and the Philippines.
Norfolk Chamber’s International Trade Manager, Julie Austin welcomed delegates to the event and thanked UKTI for sponsoring the event before introducing Ximena Florian, Overseas Business Network Advisor UKTI East of England. Ximena explained to delegates who the Overseas Business Network are and what services they can provide to UK companies.
Next up we had Anh Luong, Vietnam Overseas Business Network Partner who went into great detail about what Vietnam and Malaysia are looking to invest in. Anh explained whilst sectors such as education, retail, manufacturing are great opportunities to the UK there are still challenges which companies will face when trading with these areas.
We then took a short break and treated delegates to tea and cake to help them process the information just received.
The second half of the event was spilt into two more presentations in which Ximena Florian covered trading opportunities in Indonesia and Singapore, followed by a presentation from Roy Dallison, UK Representative of the British Chamber of Commerce Philippines, who discussed the opportunities the Philippines offer and also shared some success stories of UK companies trading in the area.
The presentations delivered by these industry experts are now available to view at your leisure. https://norfolkchamber.co.uk/sites/default/files/chamber-event/files/south_east_asia_presentation.pdf
We closed the event with a short Q&A, after which, many delegates took this opportunity to talk further with the speakers and get in some final networking to make those all-important contacts.
This month’s headlines:
UK GDP growth slowed in 2015. Despite a slight improvement in Q4 the overall annual growth was 1.9%, down from the growth of 2.1%.
The service sector remained the dominant sector in the UK, whilst construction slipped back into recession. This highlights the Chambers’ view that the UK’s economy is becoming even more unbalanced.
China, the world’s second-largest economy grew by 6.9% in 2015 – this is the lowest rate since 1990.
Norfolk Chamber’s Events Assistant Samantha Brown will be taking to the skies to join domestic violence charity Leeway in a 13,000ft charity Tandem Skydive.
Leeway is a local charity that support over 8000 adults, children and young people every year. “I believe the work they do is vital for people in Norfolk. It’s a charity very close to my heart who I’ve even had the pleasure of working with through my current job role.”
After making the jump, Sam will be falling at about 120mph, descending to 5,000 feet in around 40 seconds. The skydive will be taking place at Beccles airfield on Sunday 20th March.
To read more about Sam’s skydive or to sponsor her, visit: https://uk.virginmoneygiving.com/SammySkydives
China‘s economy is in the media every day, but what is the reality for UK companies in 2016?
The China-Britain Business Council will be hosting the 4th Annual China Business Conference on 22 March 2016 at the QEII Centre, Broad Sanctuary, Westminster, London. the Conferencewill analyse the key business issues affecting UK companies in 2016. From macro policies to the day-to-day business environment on the ground, expert speakers – drawn from business, academia and government – will equip you to make the right China business decisions.
The conference for 2016 will focus on:
For more information and to register please click here.
In a world geared to more, how can we learn to stress less?
The problem for many of us today is that we live our lives in our heads. Continually judging, comparing and analysing, constantly distracted by emails, phone calls and texts, obsessed with updating our social media profiles. We bring work home, we bring home to work. There just doesn’t seem to be time in the day to find space for anything else.
It’s a stressful, anxious way of life, but what’s the solution?
Open your mind to the Power of a Pause
We believe the secret to putting stress on hold is to introduce the Power of a Pause into your everyday life. Two minutes in every hour when we stop, step back and clear the mental clutter.
Because when we open our minds to the Power of a Pause, we open new paths to personal happiness, improved health and a better way of life.
Meet the Human Business
The Human Business is a leading provider of Mindfulness training for individuals and organisations across the UK and Europe. Through our Intelligent Body Agile Mind (IBAM) programs, we address your physical, mental and emotional health by incorporating Qigong or Mindful Movement in our program.
Specifically designed for the office environment, the Power of a Pause is an IBAM program that teaches you how to combat stress and musculoskeletal pain in the workplace. Improving the quality of your life now, tomorrow and long into the future.
Recognise the Power of a Pause?You’re not aloneWith the world on permanent fast forward, it’s little wonder that many now recognise the benefits of pausing for thought with organisations such as Apple, Google, Virgin and the Deutsche Bank all becoming increasingly mindful of their employees needs.
Why not join them?
If you too can recognise the value of learning the Power of a Pause, why not take a moment to get in touch. The sooner you do, the longer you’ll have to enjoy the benefits of a healthier, less stressful way of living.
For more details and to book an introductory session, simply contact Deniz Paradot on 03330 118999 or [email protected]
Commenting on the announcement of a deal by the Prime Minister – following months of intense negotiation on the future of the UK’s relationship with the European Union – John Longworth, Director General of the British Chambers of Commerce, said:
“Businesses across Britain will be relieved that the horse-trading between Westminster and Brussels is now concluded, and that the hard work of recent months could potentially deliver some benefits for the UK.
“The real test for the Prime Minister’s deal is whether it can deliver tangible benefits.
“On competitiveness, much relies on the Commission’s commitment to deregulation and to concluding meaningful free trade agreements. The necessary widening and deepening of the Single Market remains to be tackled. It is notable that there is no UK-specific opt-out from regulations that are not directly related to trade.
“On sovereignty, success depends on whether the UK opt-out from ‘ever closer union’ actually curbs the expansive jurisdiction of the European Court of Justice, whose activism hamstrings British businesses. Ensuring national parliaments, including our own, can actually stop EU proposals they deem damaging, is crucial.
“Safeguards for non-Eurozone countries will only feel real when all our firms – not just those in the City of London – believe that their access to markets and capital is secure. It is not clear if these vital safeguards are guaranteed.
“And on the complex and emotive issue of migration, what really matters is whether the UK has tools that allow it to balance the business need for labour and skills with the need for social cohesion. Given that its focus has been restricted just to benefits, the deal cannot substantially address this balance, or the consequent impacts on the UK economy and public policy.
“There is no certainty at this stage whether the deal’s outcomes are legally enforceable and irreversible. What’s more, the deal falls well short of the business expectations we set out nearly a year ago*.
“If delivered, this deal would change some aspects of the UK’s relationship with the EU. Yet it is inescapable that, deal or no deal, the EU itself remains largely unreformed.
“The choice facing businesses and businesspeople across Britain is now becoming clearer. For business, it is a choice between remaining in a largely unchanged EU, albeit with some potential new safeguards for the UK, or a future outside the EU, with the near-term uncertainty and disruption of leaving.”
On the UK Chamber network’s approach to the referendum campaign, Caroline Williams, CEO Norfolk Chamber said:
“Norfolk Chamber and the BCC will not be campaigning for either Remain or Leave, given the very real divisions that exist in business communities across the UK.
“In the months leading up to the referendum, we will actively survey business opinion and inform the debate without fear or favour. Additionally, we will be demanding clear information and facts from both the Remain and Leave campaigns so that businesspeople can make an informed choice at the ballot box.”
UK export growth continued to slow at the end of 2015, with manufacturers in particular struggling, a report from the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) and DHL has shown.
Export sales and orders across both manufacturing and services sectors fell significantly in the last quarter of 2015, according to the latest Quarterly International Trade Outlook.
The survey’s Trade Confidence Index, measuring the volume of trade documentation issued, fell by 2.5% on Q4 2014 to stand at 114.46 in Q4 2015 – a decline of 0.9% on Q3 2015.
Among manufacturers, the balance of firms reporting improvements in export sales over the previous three months fell from +10% in Q3 to just +1% – the lowest level since Q3 2009 – while export orders dropped from +10% to +1%.
Export growth also dipped in the services sector, where the sales balance fell three points to +15%, and export orders fell to +9% from +16% – the lowest level since Q4 2011.
The key findings from the report are:
The Trade Confidence Index, a measure of the volume of trade documentation issued nationally, fell by 0.9% on Q3 2015, and by 2.5% on Q4 2014 – the index now stands at 114.46 From the BCC’s survey, the balance of manufacturers reporting improved export sales fell markedly to +1% in Q4 2015 from +10% the previous quarter, and export orders growth fell to +1% in Q4 2015 from +10% in Q3 2015 The balance of services firms reporting improved export sales over the past three months fell to +15% in Q4 2015 from +18% in Q3 2015, and export orders growth fell to +9% in Q4 2015 from +16% in Q3 2015
Julie Austin, International Trade Manager, Norfolk Chamber of Commerce, said:
“Norfolk exporters have faced considerable challenges in recent months. Slowing growth in China and the US, along with the continued weakness in the Eurozone, have made it harder for firms to build momentum.
“While the rate of growth has dropped significantly, exports are continuing to grow – a testament to Norfolk businesses, particularly in the face of such global uncertainty.
“However, if we are to reverse our longstanding trade deficit then Norfolk firms need greater practical support – access to finance, a skilled workforce and good infrastructure connections – if they are to successfully break into new export markets, and this needs to be a national priority for the UK otherwise we risk being left behind in the global race.”
Phil Couchman, CEO, DHL Express UK, said:
“Some areas of the UK – in particular Scotland, the North East and Northern Ireland – are showing strong growth in export volumes. However, with most regions experiencing declining volumes and the UK’s trade gap recently reaching an all-time high, it’s more important than ever that we concentrate on supporting more British businesses to export.
“The UK’s relentless demand for imported goods means that we need to work hard to significantly boost exports and strike the right balance.
“As the UK focuses its efforts on exporting as a way of securing the future of our economy, DHL will continue to support businesses and ensure that more and more organisations feel comfortable in taking that first step overseas.”
Click here to view a copy of the report.