BPMA are back with their regular guest column this time following-up its Brexit position statement with membership of EURIS.
The British Pump Manufacturers Association (BPMA) which represents the business interests of UK and Irish suppliers of liquid pumps and pumping equipment throughout both the domestic and international arena has joined with other leading trade associations in its membership of EURIS.
The European Union Relationship and Industrial Strategy is an advisory body for the potential impacts of the changing relationship between the UK and EU for the UK Government, manufacturers and media. EURIS members include such notable bodies as BEAMA, GAMBICA, EAMA, REA, CESA, FETA, MTA, BFPA and TechWorks, which between them represent over 4000 companies across electro-technical, electronics, renewables and mechanical engineering products.
It has a focus on product manufacturers covered by the Single Market and the supporting regulations and standards. The member associations have extensive relationships with equivalent European trade bodies, and parts of the European Commission. The EURIS Taskforce produces Position Papers and Reports relating to the Brexit process relevant to the manufacturing sector. It also issues a weekly economic report to its members based on a tracked set of macro market indicators ranging from international trade and the general economy through to productivity costs and price indices.
Steve Schofield, Director and CEO of BPMA commented, “Following hard on the heels of our own Brexit Position Paper, which we issued to Government at the end of last year, I am delighted that the BPMA Council has decided to join EURIS.”
He continued, “Through our membership of this advisory body, we can ensure that our Members are kept abreast of all developments relating to Brexit and its likely impact on the UK’s engineering sector. But equally important is the fact that in tandem with our EURIS partners, our collective voice can be stronger.”
EURIS calls for clarity on Transition Period
A recent undertaking of the EURIS Taskforce has been the issuing of a call for clarity from the Government over the proposed two-year transition period and what this actually means for UK industry. EURIS has written to the Secretary of State for the Department for Exiting the European Union to highlight members concerns and ask for answers on a number of specific points.
According to EURIS Vice-Chairman Steve Brambley, “The current situation and lack of clarity over the transition period means that it is impossible for UK businesses to plan for the short to medium term with any certainty. They don’t know if they will be treated equally with their EU27 counterparts during transition in a range of areas such as access to public procurement contracts and treatment under EU trade deals with other global markets. We need immediate clarity from Government on this, so that our members can factor it into their current commercial decisions”.
