Amid all the political hand-wringing over Brexit this week, some of the most important conversations were not in Brussels or Downing Street but in the kitchens and living rooms of those learning their fates in the first wave of company relocations.
Amid all the political hand-wringing over Brexit this week, some of the most important conversations were not in Brussels or Downing Street but in the kitchens and living rooms of those learning their fates in the first wave of company relocations.
My Valentine’s Day supper was peppered with too much talk about cutting ties — with my partner’s firm looking to shift staff to Amsterdam. And I’m not the only one. Many others I know have held similar chats recently on relocating: about elderly parents and young children, high mortgage costs versus low rents. And always, among our gang at least, about the schools.
The debate is far from the cut and thrust of the negotiations that will dictate the final terms of the UK exit but will still be important to the fate of London. This is a crunch month for many, especially among the US financial groups that have less capacity in Europe and so have to make plans earlier. The debate has moved out of the boardrooms to the HR departments. Water cooler conversations are about who is going and when — and whether the packages on offer are sufficient for the upheaval.
This week, a French financial services lobbyist said up to 4,000 jobs were expected to move to Paris — lured by Emmanuel Macron’s charm offensive and tax exemptions — while Frankfurt now expects up to 1,000 this year. European school intakes are a good gauge. International schools in Frankfurt and Paris are among those expanding while Goldman Sachs has reserved 80 schools places in Frankfurt. Bankers suggest up to 1,000 places are being sought at international schools by financial services groups in Germany alone. Tax and pensions are also key issues — countries in Europe offer lower rates and exemptions but pension transfers could be trickier.
One banker — on the list to move to Paris because he speaks French — says moving from London will be made easier by issues such as local tax and politics as well as the culture and access to the mountains for skiing. But his place on the list is still subject to change.
What is becoming clear to staff is the uncertainty among management, shown in the vague pronouncements on numbers. Some say contracts are conditional on a hard Brexit, or on a temporary basis that could see them hauled back to London if companies decide they need just a token European team for licensing purposes.
That poses a problem for the relocators, in particular for those facing the prospect of uprooting families, although some are being offered cash incentives or promotions to make the leap easier. There is not always the promise of the same job should they need to return, however.
There is also a new tribe being set up of Europe-trotting business people — the 5:2ers with families and homes in Britain who live for the working week out of a suitcase. They are pricing the commute on the Eurostar and into City airport (and talking with spouses about how much they need to be around).
One banker says that his francophone members of staff had initially been excited about the prospect of cuts to personal income tax rates. But enthusiasm quickly cooled, he adds, when his “Eurotrash” colleagues discovered they could be moving to Dublin, and even further from their beloved beaches and ski slopes. It seems some rivals to London could be just a little too close to the UK for their own good. As for me, London life is too hard to give up. Bonne chance to the leavers.
