City professionals don’t feel united with Kingdom

Abhishek M from Chennai, who is in the UK on intra-company transfer visa, says that many like him are unsure about the future. “The most frustrating thing about Brexit is the absolute lack of clarity on what the terms of Article 50 in relation to the exit are going to be, which makes one uncertain about planning their future in the country,” he said. 

However, entry and exit into the UK for Indians might not be impacted significantly. A few of the short-term work visa categories were likely to be scrapped. On the other hand, the advantage was that rest of the European nationals would now be on the same platform as Indians. He further added, “The fall in the Pound Sterling value has definitely hit the Indians hard, particularly because when we convert the money made in the UK into INR to assess our net worth, it’s already fallen between 20-25%. Most companies, particularly financial sectors, that have their base in London have already started planning for transition to other parts of Europe, mainly Berlin. This would mean creation of lesser jobs opportunities and migration of existing jobs out of the UK.” 

Another IT employee from the city working in the UK as a consultant said, “For consultants like me, Brexit will present opportunities to assist clients while figuring out their strategy around Brexit.” Those expats living in Chennai have their own concerns. “As a UK national living in India for six years I fear the rise of a nationalistic xenophobia and the negative impact this will have on mobilities. Earlier, I will easily move from one country to another and I hate to think how difficult this is set to become,” said Adam Greig, Academic Coordinator, KM Music Conservatory. 

He further adds, “As a Scottish resident, I know that my country is being dragged into something that it did not wish, especially with the UK taking all the major decisions. I see similarities with the Indian model with Delhi as a decision-making force for the country. All in all, it is a time of uncertainty and I am thankful to be living so distant from the UK mainland now.”