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Copy of Magazine article
Copy of Magazine article.
About this update from Built Cybernetics Plc
[{"type":"text","content":"\n \nRNS Number : 6367C Aukett Swanke Group PLC 29 June 2016 \n\nCopy of article in Building Design magazine\n \nIt is right to be concerned but now is not the time to panic\n28 June 2016 | By Nicholas Thompson\nResidency rules, lack of political leadership and a slowing economy. Problems from the Brexit fallout are piling up but the UK's world economy status will eventually pull us through, says Aukett Swanke's Nicholas Thompson\nWhen I wrote in our Interims on June 7, in the context of our UK performance, that \"the current slowdown may be impacted more by the [EU] Referendum than previously thought\" I wasn't really expecting the nation to vote \"Leave\". However, I was expecting our share price to fall. I got one right.\nSo what does this vote mean for our industry?\nThe first concern is with architectural colleagues who have come to the UK from other EU countries either for experience or lack of opportunities at home.\nEither way, they are worried because there has been no precedent in their lifetimes of such an event. By way of some comfort we have at least 24 months, and maybe 30 months or longer, to determine new residency rules if indeed they change at all. And, remember, we all employ non-EU and EU nationals. At Aukett Swanke some 40% of our staff is non-UK and, of those, three-quarters are EU nationals. We have a shared problem to solve as it concerns highly skilled professionals in roles that we could not fill from the UK alone.\nThe political landscape is far more uncertain. The current lack of leadership - in both major parties - is bad for business. When the Russian government faced economic sanctions and Turkey had no political majority, clients deferred major project work that was already in our studios. Turkey recovered quite quickly, Russia did not.\nThis is the biggest issue for our industry and we will closely monitor new opportunities and continuing instructions over the summer months. As a principle in our industry we follow work - we don't create it. If the commercial markets do falter, then the government (of the day) may have to invoke Keynesian economics and support major projects such as HS2 and Crossrail 2, to maintain wider employment in the construction industry - as commercial employers have no such obligation.\nThe third issue is economic activity. Financial markets always re...