The people spoke and for once, Parliament listened. On March 29th 2017 Prime Minister Theresa May wrote a letter to Donald Tusk, President of the European Council. This officially activated article 50, beginning two years of complicated negotiations to untangle the laws and legislation that binds us.
At this point of time Hull is flying high, surrounded by the positive excitement of being the United Kingdoms City of Culture. There has also been investment in Hulls manufacturing industry, Siemens created over 1,000 jobs in Hulls Green Port thanks to a £160 million cash injection in its renewable energy sector.
Hull is a port city with ferries leaving for Europe on a daily basis and reliant on trade, the voting figures in the referendum were staggering. The number of people voting to leave, was almost double that of those voting to remain.
What do people think will happen?
Some members of the public spoke about how they think businesses will cope after Brexit.
What Happens Next ?
One of the main topics of debate is are we heading towards a hard or soft Brexit.
A hard Brexit involves cutting all ties to Europe. Everything will need to be re-negotiated from trade to customs, rights of Brits who live overseas and foreign nationals who live here.
A soft Brexit would keep us in the single market and possibly the customs union.
The single market would make trading easier, however it also includes the free movement of people.
For some people this is an issue, as taking control of borders was one if not the primary reason for their leave vote.
For some companies however, the free movement of people is the life blood of their business.
The Hospitality and Catering industry is the UK's four biggest industry and it is worried. They rely on international workers to staff restaurants, hotels and bars.
An article in the Independent brought attention to this
Jay Rayner is a broadcaster and the revered food critic for The Observer.
After giving a speech to aspiring journalists and Hull School of Art and Designs Journalism Day, I took the opportunity to ask his opinion on the subject.
Ultimately the until negotiations really get underway and information begins to emerge, all we have is speculation and hope that the powers be will look at the real impact of their actions
