HOW BREXIT MAY IMPACT THE TMT SECTOR
The 23 June seems a long time ago now. Brexit has not actually happened yet, of course, but we are probably safe to assume that at some point it will, and we have to be ready. What effects will this have other than the obvious and hopefully short term issues of more expensive and more difficult travel to our neighbouring European partners and clients? Potentially, the consequences of Brexit on the TMT sector will be significant.
A great deal of modern law has been driven by the European Courts, and while it is of course open for parliament to pass the necessary Acts to mirror some of this law in England (and one assumes in Scotland), there is nevertheless quite a bit of fallout that is not covered by simple Acts of Parliament.
Roaming charges
A possible immediate negative impact is that we will miss out on the imminent abolition of roaming charges for mobile phone usage for UK citizens. Many of us have been caught by extortionate phone bills having returned from our summer holiday in the Med, a skiing trip to the Alps, or a simple visit to a client or European office.
The EU law on roaming charges will be implemented by regulations which are due to come into full operation in June next year. These regulations have been a long time in gestation, starting in June 2007 when a mandatory cap was put on the charges that can be applied for roaming. Under the 2015 EU Roaming and Open Internet Regulation, roaming charges are due to be abolished for all end-users from 15 June 2017.
Oct-Dec 2016 issue
IT Group