Business leaders alarmed by resignations jeopardize their agreement with Brexit

By Kate Holton, Andrew MacAskill and Georgina Prodhan

LONDON (Reuters) – Business leaders have expressed concern Thursday over the draft agreement on Brexit considered the only chance of preservation a certain stability of trade between the United Kingdom and the European Union was threatening to erode, leading to a fall in the price of the shares and the pound sterling.

Barely 12 hours after British Prime Minister Theresa May announced that her cabinet had accepted the terms of the draft agreement, Brexit Minister Dominic Raab Minister of Labor and Pensions Esther McVey , resigned stating that she could not support it.

Their departures and those of other younger ministers revived the specter of Britain's affairs leaving the European Union without agreement next March and sent shares into British shares. Homebuilders, retailers and banks are collapsing.

"The political situation remains uncertain," said German automaker BMW in a statement. "We must therefore continue to prepare for the worst scenario, which would be a Brexit without negotiation."

"We continue to call on all parties to work towards a final agreement that will maintain the real frictionless trade our international production network is based. "

The European Union is the UK's largest trading partner, accounting for 44% of UK exports and 53% of UK imports.

After 45 years of membership, industries such as that the defense, automotive and aerospace have created complex supply chains based on a smooth, "just in time" delivery of thousands of parts from one to the other. of the sea that separate Britain from the mainland.

Business leaders fear that the country may stumble towards a "no deal" situation Brexit where border controls block ports and fracture supply chains such as Rolls-Royce and BAE Systems .

Karen Betts, President of the Scotch Whiskey Association, to badist a non-market, Brexit cause "considerable difficulties" to the sector and increase costs and complexity, accounting for about 20% of all UK food and beverage exports.

"ONE AGREEMENT IN CITY"

A senior executive of one of the largest banks in the United Kingdom said that it was the most disastrous government that was involved. he has never seen.

"The rest of the world is watching and laughing, it's time to have some stability so that companies can have a certainty, that's what the country needs."

The industry leaders informed of the draft agreement by the ministers late Wednesday, as a whole, had welcomed it as the best chance to reach a compromise that would ensure a period of transition and would avoid the chaos of a non-agreement.

May's office also published statements from a number of large corporations such as Diageo . , the London Stock Exchange and the Royal Mail welcoming this draft agreement.

"Most businessmen are actually pragmatists and it's about playing the cards that have been handed out to us rather than wishing a better hand. Roger Carr, President from BAE Systems, told BBC Radio.

Iain Anderson, executive chairman of public affairs firm Cicero, who represents many finance companies, said most executives did not like the agreement to May play in the city.

"Companies look with horror at the resignations in progress," he said. "Yesterday we had a plan and a stability and we have not done it today.

"There is no time to negotiate another agreement We thought we had stability We now have great instability."

The British head of the German industrial group Siemens employs 15,000 people in the UK, reiterates its call to support the draft agreement, even as senior policy makers.

"We hope that all parties remain calm, look at the facts and support this project to give British companies greater certainty," Juergen Maier said in a statement sent by email. [19659003] Even though May survives, her chances of winning a vote in parliament to approve the draft agreement are considered slim.

MARKET JITTERS

According to all legislators, the May agreement will leave Britain under the yoke of the EU rules without having Many argued that the alignment of the United States. Northern Ireland on the rest of the EU would also be detrimental to the integrity of the UK in order to avoid too hard a border with Ireland, member of the EU .

guess what could happen next, whether it's a national election, a second referendum, or an extension of the bargaining period.

A senior executive of a FTSE 100 company still hoped that legislators would finally be persuaded to vote in favor of the agreement when it is presented to Parliament before the end of the year.

"We are going to need the market to vomit and scare them all so that they vote in his favor," he said. The pound was down 1.8% against the dollar in the early evening.

The CEO of the French outdoor advertising company JCDecaux who manages advertising for London's bus shelters and makes 10% of his sales in Britain, called the situation "obviously very serious".

"Today's events reinforce the uncertainties of the market," Jean-Charles Decaux told Reuters in an interview with an industrial conference in Barcelona.

Former CEO Martin Sorrell and founder of the advertising agency group WPP and one of Britain's best-known businessmen, said the country was in a state . "This morning's situation undermines the confidence of the city and the country," he told Reuters.

Weir and Alexandra Hudson)

This story was not changed by Firstpost staff and is generated by automatic feeding.