Toni Forrester has expressed her fears following the Brexit decision.
BREXIT: The ramifications of the UK’s decision to exit the EU is not yet known, but the uncertainty surrounding the exit will be damaging to business in Donegal, according to Letterkenny Chamber boss Toni Forrester.
Chief executive of Letterkenny Chamber – Toni Forrester, told Donegal Daily that she was shocked and fearful for the future following the Brexit decision.
Forrester told Donegal Daily, “Letterkenny Chamber always backed the remain campaign and supported our colleagues in Londonderry Chamber in this regard.
“We are very shocked and disappointed with the result. As a border county we have always dealt with the exchange rate fluctuations and working across different jurisdictions.
“However, this is different. For a number of years cross border work had taken a back seat but over the last year it has firmly come back on the agenda and we were looking forward to working with our neighbouring chamber and councils.
“However, this vote has injected uncertainty into all business dealings, uncertainty is damaging to business so we need to limit the effect as much and as soon as possible.
“Thousands of people cross the border here in Donegal each day for work, education and socially. None of us know what will happen with the border, there have been much talk about soft borders but anything that might impede or put barriers up against cross border trade or movement of people will have serious implications for this region.
“The Northwest region is the most economically deprived region of the UK and as a result this vote to leave will have a far greater impact here than on any other region. Donegal and Derry share a Gateway and each area needs the other to be sustainable.
“Just as we are coming out of recession and seeing our economy grow a little we are concerned that this vote will set us back and projects such as the A5 that we hoped would be started soon may not be possible.
“If we look around Letterkenny and the North West EU funding has helped underpin many economic projects, it has helped bring the region through the peace process and now we have no idea how this vote will impact on this type of funding. After this vote we will need to ensure that the business voice of the North West region is heard clearly in the corridors of power.”
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