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NEWSIn or Out! Life after Brexit8|By Sean Moloney, Managing Director, Elaborate Communications Ltd.On Thursday 23rd June the people of the United Kingdom voted to leave the European Union – a monumental decision that will fundamentally affect the way the UK is governed in the future.But while ‘Remainers’ and onlookers in Europe and beyond reeled in disbelief that Brexit (Britain’s exit) was actually happening, the shipping industry took on something of a sanguine attitude to the vote – preferring contemplation, assessment and reality over any knee-jerk reaction to the vote.As one leading shipping personality told me, ‘look shipping is global and while this is a debate happening in a far off corner of Europe, its impact will not be largely felt in global shipping’.Before we look at the direct impact onunexpectedly dropped in July. According to figures by the Office of National Statistics, the claimant count fell by 8,600, compared with expectations of a rise of 9,500.The unemployment rate in the three months to the end of June stood still at 4.9% while average weekly earnings excluding bonuses rose 2.3% over the same period. The employment rate reached a record high of 74.4%, with 31.7 million people in work in the three months to May – 176,000 more than the quarter before. Unemployment fell by 54,000 to 1.65 million over the same period. The claimant count, including those on jobseeker’s allowance, increased by 400 in June to 759,100, the fourth consecutive monthly rise.“The labour market continued on a strong trend in the second quarter of 2016, with a new record employment rate,” said ONS statistician DavidBritain voted to leave. Sir Michael Bibby, the next President of the UK Chamber of Shipping, told the shipping newspaper Tradewinds that from a business point of view, the risks far outweigh the opportunities. “If you are going to reduce a free-trade zone, I don’t see how that could ultimately help business,” he told reporters. Harry Theochari, global head of transport at Norton Rose Fulbright, told the same newspaper that he could not envisage how the UK would benefit from not being part of a much bigger and more powerful organisation. “There are lots of things people don’t like, but if you look at it from a commercial point of view, I really don’t see any great benefits in leaving, and I can see lots of downsides,” he said.However, Quentin Soanes, managing director of shipbroker Sterling Shipping,shipping, it is worth assessing the impact at home. Well if very recent statistics are to be believed, the vote has had something of a positive impact immediately.Brexit has not hampered the UK’s job scene as the number of peopleclaiming jobseeker’s allowanceFreeman.But how will shippingbe affected? Press reports just before the referendum notedthe potential for doom andgloom if“We are not loved in Europe and I think it would actually be very good for Europe. They need a shock. The corruption is beyond belief, the inefficiency is appalling and some of the subsidies are immoral.”WAVES | ISSUE 51