Brexit uncertainty has hit industry investment, PA president warns

The prolonged uncertainty over the shape and timeline of Brexit has led to delayed investment decisions from publishers which will affect industry growth further down the line, Publishers Association president Peter Phillips has said.    

Speaking in an interview with The Bookseller about his priorities in the PA role, Phillips - who is c.e.o. of Cambridge University Press - said: "I think there has been a lot of patience from publishers through this period, people have been very professional in the way they have prepared for it, but I think it will be good to have some clarity on how things will go for the UK from here.” 

Investment for the future – rather than current revenues – is where the damage is being done, Phillips said. “I know from the things senior publishers say to me from across the industry that that’s affected everyone. If you are looking to make a big investment which is about supporting growth in your exports, your understanding of what the UK’s position will be [in the future] will be affected: it could be around product, it could be around distribution, it could be around a number of different aspects.” 

The effects of the past months of Brexit uncertainty will be felt by the industry in the future, then, when the growth that would otherwise have been achieved through that investment fails to materialise. 

But Phillips is optimistic that the industry can regain lost ground. “I think the UK has fantastic strength in its publishing and we have great people working in the industry, and we are still the world’s number one exporter of books. So I am optimistic about our future, I just wish we could get clarity so we are all able to move on and take the right decisions for whatever new world we are moving into.”

Phillips also said the PA was hard at work - despite the imminent change of prime minister - in lobbying amongst other things against a No Deal, saying: "“Whatever one’s political views, for or against Brexit, it’s very clear for us – as for many industries – that No Deal is not a good outcome,”