On the morning of Tuesday 10th October 2017 we were pleased to hold the breakfast seminar “Brexit: Immigration, Employment in Tax” organised in collaboration with Buckles Solicitors LLP, Benefactor of the Chamber. The event was held, very fittingly, on their premises close to Chancery Lane; in the heart of the City.
Guests from several of our member companies attended the seminar, interestingly from a variety of sectors. Following an opportunity for attendees to meet each other over coffee, Alejandro Verdú de Haro, Head of International at Buckles Solicitors, welcomed everybody on behalf of his firm and the Spanish Chamber of Commerce in Great Britain.
Giles Betts, Partner and Head of Employment at Buckles then began the seminar by speaking about the effect that Brexit has had so far on employment in the UK and how it potentially would affect it in the future. In particular, he spoke of the sectors which employ the most individuals from other EU countries (such as hospitality, construction, and healthcare) and how this varies around the UK. Next, Ben Sheldrick, Senior Partner (UK/US) at Magrath Sheldrick Solicitors LLP spoke about how Brexit was affecting the field of immigration law. He mentioned how in the 21st century the UK has seen a substantial spike in immigration from across Europe, but how since last year’s referendum this has been stagnated. He also provided insight on the government’s three phase approach to the introduction of a new immigration system for EU nationals, as well as its proposals for EU citizens arriving in the UK after the yet-specified date and during the Implementation Period. After Mr Sheldrick’s presentation, Alejandro Verdú de Haro took over to speak about tax. His topics covered the impacts Brexit could have on customs & excise duties, value added tax and on direct taxes in Spain as well as in the UK.
To conclude the seminar, attendees had the opportunity to bring up further points of discussion and ask any questions they had for all three of the speakers, following by a further opportunity to discuss such matters as well as to network over coffee.
We would like to warmly thank our Benefactor Buckles Solicitors LLP for hosting the event and for providing such interesting insight, as well as Magrath Sheldrick LLP for their participation in the talk. We would also like to thank all guests who joined us for the seminar and hope that they found it as worthwhile as we did.
If you would like to find out about other activities organised by the Spanish Chamber of Commerce, we encourage you to keep an eye on the UPCOMING EVENTS section on our website. In addition to this, you can also subscribe to our biweekly newsletter in order to receive updates and information about the events we hold.
