Brexit and its Implications on the Construction Industry
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Brexit and its Implications on the Construction Industry
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12/01/2021
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11:00
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12:00
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0.5
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Online CPD, -
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Join us for this 30 minute CPD where speakers from Eugene F Collins will discuss Brexit and it’s Implications.
Brexit has been hanging over all of us for years and will very shortly become a reality. Negotiations are going to the wire and none of us know whether the UK will be leaving with a deal or without one. What we do know is that they will be leaving and for months now business has been preparing for that event.
The construction industry is no different. We hope that by mid January, when we are proposing to speak to you in more depth about Brexit and its implications, we will have further clarity in respect of some of the issues and concerns within the industry arising from the departure. For the moment the best we can do is try and anticipate some of the issues likely to arise.
Commentators have identified some areas of particular concern to contracting parties and design professionals involved in construction projects in Ireland.
The industry is of course concerned with supply chain and with the delays in deliveries of products which appear to be almost inevitable. There is, in addition, a concern about UK materials with the possibility of shortages or unavailability of product – we understand that some businesses in the UK are at this stage making stockpiling arrangements, and there is no reason to suspect that companies involved in supplying construction products are immune to the concerns which have given rise to those decisions.
These very real concerns about delays and availability will have to be addressed in contracts and the parties, having assessed risks, will have to decide which of them should bear them.
Concerns have also been expressed about the use of UK products in Irish projects going forward. The industry has become accustomed to the requirements of the Construction Products Regulations and the fact that all products to be incorporated in projects must comply with those regulations and bear CE marking as evidence of such compliance. Once the UK leaves the EU questions must arise as to whether UK products (which will, it is assumed, not bear CE marking) can be used in European construction projects. The NSAI has already provided some guidance in this regard and we propose to review that guidance as updated once the UK position becomes clearer
On the procurement front it remains unclear whether UK contractors will be admitted to tenders for Irish projects or whether Irish contractors will be permitted to tender for UK projects. We hope to have additional clarity in respect of the procurement sphere by the time we speak to you in January
There are undoubtedly some difficult and trying times ahead – difficult in any circumstances never mind in the midst of a global pandemic – but the best that those involved in projects can do is to inform themselves of likely impact in as far as possible, assess the risks arising and attempt to manage those risks and concerns both contractually and pragmatically going forward
We look forward to presenting in relation to Brexit and its likely impact on construction projects in January.
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Michelle Smith