East Renfrewshire, Renfrewshire and Inverclyde imports almost £200 million from the EU in the services sector

East Renfrewshire, Renfrewshire and Inverclyde are reliant on almost £200 million of imports from the EU in the services sector, according to new figures.
The Brexit transition period is due to end on December 31, 2020.The Brexit transition period is due to end on December 31, 2020.
The Brexit transition period is due to end on December 31, 2020.

The Confederation of British Industry said the numbers show the importance of a good Brexit deal with the European Union, which must put services “at the heart” of future trading.

Opposition parties are urging the Government to seek an extension to the current transition period in light of the “catastrophic economic impact” of the coronavirus outbreak.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Data from the Office for National Statistics, published for the first time, shows Inverclyde, East Renfrewshire and Renfrewshire imported services worth £196 million in 2017, excluding travel.

This means EU trade made up 40.6 per cent of services, with the rest of the world responsible for the remaining £286 million.

In total, the UK’s services trade with the bloc was worth £87 billion in 2017 – 48 per cent of international services imports.

The CBI said services are “essential to our prosperity in towns up and down the country”, though often invisible to our daily life.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

Nicole Sykes, the lobby group’s head of UK-EU negotiations, said: “These figures show clearly that trade with the EU, especially in services makes it really important we get a good services deal.

“Services must be at the heart of that because it’s such a national strength. We have to protect that in the weeks ahead as we look to look past coronavirus and think about restarting, reviving and renewing our economy.”

Though the value of the travel industry for Inverclyde, East Renfrewshire and Renfrewshire is not available, figures show it was the largest type of EU service import to Scotland, and is worth £2.16 billion.

This was followed by financial and insurance activities, with a value of £765 million.

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

The Brexit transition period is due to finish at the end of 2020, with the Scottish National Party suggesting extending the transition period by two years because of Covid-19.

Speaking at PMQs, the party’s Westminster leader Ian Blackford said: “The Government is shamefully gambling our economic future on a no-deal Brexit in the middle of a health emergency.

“Why is the Government threatening to isolate our economy at the end of the year during the biggest economic crisis of our time?

“What we should be doing is removing uncertainty and we should put a stop to these talks.”

Hide Ad
Hide Ad

However, any extension request would have to happen before the June 30 deadline.

A government spokesman said that since 2000, UK imports of services from the rest of the world has increased faster than those from the EU.

He added: “As a new independent trading nation, we will have the opportunity to strike free trade agreements which will be a key driver in levelling up the UK, benefiting every region and nation.

“The transition period ends on December 31, 2020, as enshrined in EU law, which the Prime Minister has made clear he has no intention of changing.”

Comment Guidelines

National World encourages reader discussion on our stories. User feedback, insights and back-and-forth exchanges add a rich layer of context to reporting. Please review our Community Guidelines before commenting.