The general trade union GMB Scotland issued a statement today regarding the Brexit negotiations and has described Scottish economy as a ‘sitting duck’.
GMB Scotland joined the calls for the UK Government to publish its ‘Brexit Impact’ in full after a new report outlined bleak prospects for Scotland’s post-Brexit future.
A report commissioned by the union and produced by the University of Strathclyde, ‘Brexit and the Sectors of the Scottish Economy’, identifies the exposure Scotland will face as a result of the EU withdrawal.
According to the report Scotland exports around £12 billion worth of goods and produce to the EU, mostly in the food and drink sector, and this supports around 134,000 jobs.
This calls the UK government’s negotiation strategy into question, and analysis shows that Brexit could cost the Scottish economy between 30,000 and 80,000 jobs over the next decade.
GMB Scotland Secretary Gary Smith said: "Now, more than ever, we need the UK Government to come clean on what it knows about the impact of Brexit on the Scottish economy and the livelihoods dependent on our trade with the EU."
Smith questions whether or not Scotland’s economic interests are being suitably defended by the government. He also said: “But let’s be clear that there will be significant job losses as a result of Brexit, more will be vulnerable to future trade deal negotiations and there is no guarantee of a UK ‘cushion effect’ with poor forecasts for domestic economic growth."
So against the backdrop of Brexit, the Scottish economy resembles a sitting duck."