1. Engineering, the UK, and the EU
A webinar about the potential impact of the Brexit vote on UK engineering
Hello. My name is Hayaatun Sillem. I am the Deputy CEO and Director of Strategy at the Royal Academy of Engineering. Thank you very much for joining us today.
We all know that the EU referendum result will have a major impact on UK engineering in all its forms, both in industry and in academia.
That is why the 38 organisations representing the engineering profession through the Engineering the Future alliance have come together to provide evidence-based advice to government in support of the best possible outcome for the UK and for UK engineering.
We want to highlight to government the most significant concerns of the engineering community and how they can be mitigated. We also want to identify the opportunities to strengthen engineering and its relationship to the rest of the world.
This is the start of the consultation activities that we are undertaking to tap into the expertise, experience and advice of our Fellows, members and partners and everyone with an interest in engineering. Today, we are seeking your views on five key areas:

2. Area 1 –Regions, devolved nations and funding
The opportunity for a UK industrial strategy outside of the EU
Choice of company location / relocation
The impact of short term, reactive policy measures to stabilise the economy
Regional and Devolved Nation development
Preferred models for new trade agreements
First, we want to explore the potential impact on the economy as a whole. It is critical that the UK retains and indeed increases its competitiveness and productivity: what are the best mechanisms for achieving this from outside the EU?
The new government has renewed its commitment to industrial strategy, which brings great potential and opportunity: how can we help the government develop really effective plans to boost those sectors that are of high value to the UK?
We are planning to hold a workshop to explore these issues.
Before the referendum, several engineering companies made statements about the potential impact of a leave vote on future investment. We are interested to hear from companies that may move facilities or delay investment following the referendum result and from companies that see the situation as an opportunity for growth.
European regional funding has supported several regions in the UK that have strong engineering and manufacturing bases. We are looking to advise government on the best way to support engineering in these regions once we are outside the EU.
We would welcome your views on these issues.

3. Area 2 – Research and innovation
Funding – science and engineering have benefitted hugely from EU funding for research
Collaboration – global research teams
Attracting talent – how can we ensure that the UK retains its attractiveness to overseas researchers?
The second area we are considering is research and innovation. We are looking at ways to ensure that the UK retains its position as one of the most successful countries in the world for research.
The UK has been very successful in winning high levels of funding from the EU for these activities. EU support has also provided opportunities for international collaboration, interdisciplinary research and access to international research facilities. What will the UK need to do to ensure it maintains excellence?
Being able to retain and recruit talented individuals from the global market place has been a critical factor in our success: how can the UK continue to attract the world’s best researchers and innovators both during the current period of uncertainty and once we formally leave the EU?

4. Area 3 - Skills
Short and long term skills solutions to engineering skills shortages at all levels
Higher education – students and staff
Schools – teachers and curriculum
Registration and professional standards
Movement of people
The third area of interest is skills.
The engineering skills shortage in the UK is well documented. Many employers rely on EU recruitment to help fill the gaps. We are interested in the impact of leaving the EU on skills and the workforce for engineering industry. How can the UK ensure that industry can continue to access the skilled people it needs?
In UK higher education, engineering courses have a higher proportion of EU students than other disciplines overall and a significant number of EU nationals teach engineering and technology in UK universities.
With many teachers from the EU working in UK secondary schools, we also want to understand what the effects of change might be.
Equally, what will be the situation for the many thousands of UK engineers working in the EU?
We are planning to hold a workshop on these issues.

5. Area 4 – Energy, Technology and the Environment
Waste and resource management
Water and flood defence management
Transport
Digital and telecommunications
Energy and environment
The fourth area we are considering is infrastructure. We would welcome your input on how leaving the EU will have an impact on areas such as:
Waste and resource management
Water and flood defence
Transport
Digital and telecommunications
Energy and environment
What are the risks and opportunities for planning, investment, delivery and maintenance of our national infrastructure?
We will be holding workshop on energy and environment and we may convene more meetings to explore other themes as needed.

6. Area 5 – Standards and regulations
Access to the single market
Energy and environment
Telecommunications and data
Bioengineering and medtech
Business management and IP
Employment
The fifth area that we are considering covers standards, codes and regulations. There is obviously significant overlap with a number of the other priority areas we are working on.
At the request of government, we have already provided a summary of the issues relating to standards and access to markets. We are also delving deeper into areas where EU regulations have a strong influence on specific sectors and more generally on the business environment.
What we are interested in are your views on those standards and regulations that have the greatest impact on business, research and innovation, what challenges will arise and what opportunities might present themselves. How do we continue to influence and shape standards and codes from outside the EU?

7. What now, what next?
What other critical areas for engineering does the referendum result affect?
Where are the opportunities for engineering to grow and benefit from the new arrangements?
If you are interested in taking part or contributing more widely to the project please contact us on
I have outlined the five areas on which we are focusing. But we may have missed other critical areas so would be very grateful to have this flagged up.
We’d now like to invite you to provide your comments on the issues raised. We hope that you will see this as a real opportunity to share your thoughts on the whole breadth of the issues for engineering.
The project team will be here to receive your comments over the next hour. On the screen, you will see contact details for the project team in case you want to add anything later.
Thank you very much in advance for your time and contribution to this critical debate for the nation and for engineering.

8. Discussion