<p>The head of Britain's big business lobby on Monday urged companies to shift to "an emergency footing" as the prospect of a no-deal <a href="https://www.google.com/url?client=internal-uds-cse&amp;cx=006054055338965708568:09spwrlibei&amp;q=https://www.wionews.com/world/uk-pm-boris-johnson-heads-to-scotland-as-local-leader-attacks-no-deal-brexit-239153&amp;sa=U&amp;ved=2ahUKEwiutpjF7tnjAhWB7WEKHeKNDyEQFjABegQIDRAC&amp;usg=AOvVaw3OqUTbUB56cP2qqKncGMY2">Brexit</a> becomes more likely.</p>

<p>The Confederation of British Industry in a report also warned that the European Union was less prepared than Britain for such an eventuality but said both sides were not ready.</p>

<p>CBI chief Carolyn Fairbairn wrote in The Times that a <a href="https://www.google.com/url?client=internal-uds-cse&amp;cx=006054055338965708568:09spwrlibei&amp;q=https://www.wionews.com/world/ditch-backstop-or-face-no-deal-brexit-uk-prime-minister-boris-johnson-tells-european-union-238918&amp;sa=U&amp;ved=2ahUKEwiutpjF7tnjAhWB7WEKHeKNDyEQFjAFegQIChAC&amp;usg=AOvVaw1EJyANSaoRj6_5CH1Nhb7e">no-deal Brexit</a> had become a "serious possibility".</p>

<p>"Now is the time to shift to an emergency footing."</p>

<p>"While it's not possible to seal our economy from all the damage the floodwaters of no-deal will cause, we can lay down the sandbags and protect as much as we can," she said.</p>

<p>The CBI's head of EU negotiations Nicole Sykes, however, tweeted that it was "like putting sandbags down for a flood.</p>

<p>"Your kitchen's still going to be underwater but MAYBE we can save the bedroom upstairs," she wrote.</p>

<div class="ui-state-default" contenteditable="false">
<div class="twitter-block" draggable="false">
<blockquote class="twitter-tweet" data-lang="en">
<p dir="ltr" lang="en">So no, we're not ready. A lot needs to be done, by everyone.<br />
That leaves -would it make a difference? Yes. And we should do what we can. But it's like putting sandbags down for a flood. Your kitchen's still going to be underwater but MAYBE we can save the bedrooms upstairs (7/9) <a href="https://t.co/sKKhOxR81v">pic.twitter.com/sKKhOxR81v</a></p>
— Nicole Sykes (@NicoleSykes_) <a href="https://twitter.com/NicoleSykes_/status/1155587093055377409?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">July 28, 2019</a></blockquote>
<script async src="https://platform.twitter.com/widgets.js" charset="utf-8"></script></div>
<a class="close-mark close-div" href="#" id="jqclosemark">×</a></div>

<p>The CBI report said: "The EU lags behind the UK in seeking to prevent the worst effects of a no-deal scenario.</p>

<p>"Although businesses have already spent billions on contingency planning for no-deal, they remain hampered by unclear advice, timelines, cost, and complexity," it said.</p>

<p>The report noted that larger companies in highly regulated areas such as financial services had prepared contingency plans but preparations in other sectors such as agriculture and manufacturing were lagging behind.</p>

<p>"There's a great deal more that the government, and firms, must do," Fairbairn said, calling in particular for a government information campaign to target smaller businesses that need the most help to prepare.</p>

<p>But she concluded that even with preparations in place "the shock of no-deal can only be reduced, not removed. It's a shock that will reverberate for years to come".</p>


The head of Britain's big business lobby on Monday urged companies to shift to "an emergency footing" as the prospect of a no-deal Brexit becomes more likely. The Confederation of British Industry in a report also warned that the European Union was less prepared than Britain for such an eventuality but said both sides were not ready.

The head of Britain's big business lobby on Monday urged companies to shift to "an emergency footing" as the prospect of a no-deal Brexit becomes more likely. The Confederation of British Industry in a report also warned that the European Union was less prepared than Britain for such an eventuality but said both sides were not ready. CBI chief Carolyn Fairbairn wrote in The Times that a no-deal Brexit had become a "serious possibility". "Now is the time to shift to an emergency footing." "While it's not possible to seal our economy from all the damage the floodwaters of no-deal will cause, we can lay down the sandbags and protect as much as we can," she said. The CBI's head of EU negotiations Nicole Sykes, however, tweeted that it was "like putting sandbags down for a flood. "Your kitchen's still going to be underwater but MAYBE we can save the bedroom upstairs," she wrote. So no, we're not ready. A lot needs to be done, by everyone. That leaves -would it make a difference? Yes. And we should do what we can. But it's like putting sandbags down for a flood. Your kitchen's still going to be underwater but MAYBE we can save the bedrooms upstairs (7/9) pic.twitter.com/sKKhOxR81v — Nicole Sykes (@NicoleSykes_) July 28, 2019 × The CBI report said: "The EU lags behind the UK in seeking to prevent the worst effects of a no-deal scenario. "Although businesses have already spent billions on contingency planning for no-deal, they remain hampered by unclear advice, timelines, cost, and complexity," it said. The report noted that larger companies in highly regulated areas such as financial services had prepared contingency plans but preparations in other sectors such as agriculture and manufacturing were lagging behind. "There's a great deal more that the government, and firms, must do," Fairbairn said, calling in particular for a government information campaign to target smaller businesses that need the most help to prepare. But she concluded that even with preparations in place "the shock of no-deal can only be reduced, not removed. It's a shock that will reverberate for years to come".

No-deal Brexit had become a 'serious possibility': UK industry chief Carolyn Fairbairn

carolyn-fairbairn

Carolyn Fairbairn, News on Carolyn Fairbairn, stories on Carolyn Fairbairn, articles on Carolyn Fairbairn, Carolyn Fairbairn stories at Wion, Carolyn Fairbairn news, Carolyn Fairbairn latest news

carolyn fairbairn

No-deal Brexit had become a 'serious possibility': UK industry chief Carolyn Fairbairn