Employment Law experts, Oliver Brabbins and Robert Hickford of Steeles law delivered a thought provoking HR forum to 40 attendees yesterday (13.9.17).
Focussing on Preventing Discrimination in the Workplace, the speakers examined the Equality Act 2010 and gave a comprehensive review of the law relating to this sensitive are of HR management.
Attendees heard a review of a number of landmark cases of discrimination and harassment in the workplace and a roundup of other recent landmark employment law cases.
The next HR Forum, sponsored by Birketts, focuses on Employee Investigations and takes place on 08 November 2017. Find out more and book your place here.
Commenting on the labour market statistics for September 2017, released today by the Office for National Statistics, Nova Fairbank, Public Affairs Manager for Norfolk Chamber said:
“The continued rise in employment, coupled with falling unemployment, is further evidence that the Norfolk jobs market remains resilient, with firms continuing to recruit despite a softening economic picture.
“That said, the labour market continues to face a number of major challenges. With pay growth unchanged, inflation continues to comfortably outpace earnings growth, which is putting the brakes on consumer spending, a major determinant of UK economic growth. However, the continued weakness in real wage growth should give the MPC sufficient leeway to keep interest rates on hold, despite the pick-up in inflation.
“It is concerning that the number of vacancies remains well above the historical average – a further indication of the continued skills shortage faced by business, which is weighing on productivity and growth prospects. The latest research from the British Chambers of Commerce found that half of firms Norfolk and the rest of the UK had faced skills or labour shortages over the past year.
“A key priority for the Autumn Budget must be to support companies looking to recruit and grow their business, including tackling the high up-front taxes and costs of doing business in the UK. As the Brexit process unfolds, a key focus must be on delivering a post Brexit immigration system that reflects the needs of the UK economy.”
We have been informed by the Iraqi Commercial attache in London, that as from 30th August 2017, all goods that have been produced outside of the United Kingdom (foreign origin) must now have a formal letter issued by the consignor confirming that the goods have been produced for thier benefit.
This letter must accompany all documents being submitted to the Embassy for legalisation.
Over 90 businesses came together last week for drinks, burgers and some networking. Norfolk Chamber Gold Patron, Migsolv, kindly hosted this event at their premises on Barnard Road.
Guests were greeted with complimentary ‘goody-bags’ and an open bar.
Throughout the evening delegates were able to attend tours of Migsolv’s high security data-stores to gain an understanding of how they work.
Jason Williams, Business Manager at the Norfolk Chamber said:“This was a fantastic event and we are very grateful to our Gold Patron Migsolv for hosting it. It gave a great setting for lots of productive and interesting networking and the added benefit of good quality food & drink and a very informative tour of the data centre was much appreciated”
A client of the Colombian British Chamber of Commerce in Bogota, would like to offer their leather products and accessories to interested parties of importers or brokers within Norfolk.
They are looking to identify prospective buyers of leather handbags, wallets, key holders, leather files and much more, in order to introduce to new markets, an exotic range of accessories with ethnic designs and value-added features, from Colombia and Latin America.
The combination of using ancestral techniques for leather crafting with fabric embroidery harnessing modern quality control methods, means that these products are of the highest quality. These accessories represent a unique cultural identity whilst at the same time having the functionality required for today’s urban living.
Please take a look at their examples shown in the PDF below.
Anyone interested in learning more, please contact the International Trade Team on 01603 729711 or export@norfolkchamber.co.uk
The region’s premier business exhibition, B2B 2017 has once again sold out with more than 100 exhibitors! Returning to Norwich City Football club on Thursday 12th October, the exhibition will see two floors of the football club filled with leading Norfolk businesses, showcasing the latest products and services and sharing ideas that can help Norfolk businesses. This annual exhibition is a leading event in the region’s commercial calendar, attracting a diverse mix of exhibitors and hundreds of visitors keen to find new opportunities. This year is shaping up to be bigger than, with plenty of reasons to attend in 2017:
Meet face to face with Norfolk’s leading businesses.
We have a superb line-up of expert trainers delivering free 20 minute masterclasses on core areas that can help you and your business.
There are lots of exclusive special offers, discounts and free giveaways
Unique networking opportunities with business leaders, directors, entrepreneurs and decision makers
B2B 2017 is completely FREE and open to all businesses. Book your advance ticket here to beat the queues on the day and be entered into a prize draw to win one of 4 Jarrold Vouchers.
On the occasion of the visit of a high-level Finnish business delegation to London, the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC), and the Finnish Chambers of Commerce (Kauppakamari) on 14 September 2017 jointly called for UK and EU negotiators to minimise trade barriers – and prioritise shared economic ties beyond Brexit.
There are strong commercial links between the UK and Finland: the UK imports £2.6bn of goods and services from Finland, and exports £2.7bn of goods and services to the country.
Science and Innovation are areas of very active cooperation between the two countries, with the UK and Finland working closely together on life sciences, digital, and low carbon technologies. There are a number of partnerships between the two countries, many of which are facilitated by the EU Horizon 2020 strategy.
The future of these projects, the long-term ease of trading between the UK and Finland, as well as the future status of Finnish nationals in Britain and British nationals in Finland, are all questions where British and Finnish businesses want negotiators to deliver clarity as soon as possible.
Dr Adam Marshall, Director General of the British Chambers of Commerce, said:
“As we welcome our Finnish colleagues to London, the vibrant trade links between our countries are yet another reminder of the importance of reducing any possible future trade barriers between the UK and the EU.
“Businesses want to minimise the risk to free-flowing trade with partners like Finland, and to avoid the creation of artificial new barriers that stop companies collaborating across boundaries. The on-going Brexit negotiations must seek to provide businesses with clear answers on practical issues including customs procedures, health and safety checks, and tax rules – and guarantee the status of nationals resident on either side.
“The links between innovative British and Finnish businesses are an important reminder that the Brexit negotiations must also deliver a framework for future collaboration between the UK and the EU on science and innovation.”
Dr Risto Penttilä, CEO of Finland Chamber of Commerce, said:
“The UK has been one of Finland’s strongest allies in promoting free trade and pragmatic reforms in the EU. The objective of the Brexit negotiations must be a European wide market that includes the UK, Switzerland and the EEA countries.
“Brexit must not lead to new obstacles or increased costs for companies from the UK, Finland or other EU countries. The UK is one of our most important trading partners, and a strong British economy will benefit both Europe and Finland.
“The Brexit process has reached a point where committed political leadership is needed both in the UK and the EU. Businesses, as well as citizens, need a clear roadmap for the years to come to ensure a smooth transition.”
Since the beginning of the year Norfolk Chamber, together with other strategic partners has been working with New Anglia Local Enterprise Partnership to draft the new economic strategy for Norfolk and Suffolk. The strategy is the culmination of collaborative process which has sought to enrich the understanding of the Norfolk and Suffolk economy, establish a shared vision of the kind of place and economy we want the area to be and set out the means by which it will be achieved.
Back in June and July, Norfolk Chamber held a series of events across Norfolk to gather feedback and opinions from local businesses at to what they wanted to see in the strategy and much of that feedback has been incorporated in the current draft.
The first draft is now out for endorsement from key strategic partners across Norfolk and Suffolk and will be ratified by the New Anglia LEP Board on 25 October. In parallel to the endorsement process, the strategy together with the evidence report will be checked by a professional proof reader to iron out any remaining glitches.
Some of the key targets to 2036 include:
· 30,000 new successful businesses
· 88,000 new jobs
· Grow the economy by £17.5 billion
· 66% of the population will have NVQ3+
· 140,000 new homes
Commenting on the draft Economic Strategy, Nova Fairbank, Public Affairs Manager for Norfolk Chamber said:
“Chamber members of differing sizes and a diverse range of sectors from across Norfolk have contributed to the drafting of the new Economic Strategy. The Strategy lays out the direction for the Norfolk and Suffolk economies through to 2036, highlighting where key strengths can be supported and where improvements are necessary and the Norfolk Chamber is happy to endorse the document.”
The finalised Economic Strategy and the Evidence Report to be published on New Anglia LEP’s website on 26 October – this will be an interactive online document, which will use linked page turning software to help direct readers to more information on specifics including programmes, initiatives, organisations and other relevant documents.
During the autumn, a range of events and opportunities will be held to raise awareness and publicise the new Economic Strategy. Watch this website to find out more information as it becomes available.
Publishing the strategy is by no means the end – and over the next couple of months New Anglia LEP, working closely with Norfolk Chamber and other business representative groups, local authority partners and sector groups will be developing a plan of action to implement the new economic strategy.
If you have any feedback on the pre-endorsement document, or wish to add your endorsement to the Strategy, please email: Nova.fairbank@Norfolkchamber.co.uk
On Wednesday, we were joined by 200 guests at our seventh instalment of our half-day technology conference, Talking Tech 2017. The event proved to be our busiest yet, filling up the fantastic venue, The Space, with people keen to hear (and see) the latest technological innovations taking place on a national and local scale.
The vibrant and spacious venue was filled with 13 exhibitors, including sponsors of the event Barclays Eagle Labs and Computer Service Centre. We were also joined by PC World, 101 Ltd, Ashton Shaw to name a few, making it our most interactive and engaging exhibition yet! After mingling over tea and coffee, the guests were then introduced to our keynote speakers by the host for the morning, our very own CEO Chris Sargisson.
We first heard from Dom Davis, who spoke about the Rise of artificial intelligence, whose impassioned presentation was both informative but light-hearted. He was followed by Dean Withey who spoke about ubisend’s innovative use of Chatbots. John Carr from Facebook then took to the stage to inform the audience about Facebook’s influence on businesses, its focus on mobile use and the emphasis the company are putting on video. Prison Voicemail and Aviva then spoke about their respective use of technological advances to achieve their goals and make waves in their industries.
The guests then took part in the four workshops provided by local experts Immersive VR, The User Story, Integro and Innershed. Following on from these interactive workshops, it was back to the auditorium for the lightning talks.
This is when local tech pioneers took to the main stage to showcase their journeys and their influence on the tech scene in Norfolk. We heard from Stacey Harris (Foolproof), Claire Riseborough (Step into Tech), Tim Robinson (Tech East), James Horne (BlueSky UAV Drones) and Peter Green (CSS Cloud Ltd).
Following from the Q+A with the audience and our lightning talk speakers, Chris then wrapped up the stimulating and interesting event and welcomed guests to the Networking Lunch, complete with a fantastic spread of sandwiches and sweet treats. This gave the guests another opportunity to visit the engaging exhibition and catch up with their fellow members of the local business community.
A new Transatlantic service made its first call at Britain’s largest container port, Felixstowe, earlier this month as part of a link between northern Europe, the UK, a selection of US East Coast ports and Panama.
Operated by The New World Alliance Lines, the Americas Europe Express (AEE) service is the Alliance’s third transatlantic route complementing the two existing weekly services that also call at Felixstowe.
The service offers shippers competitive Westbound transit times (of eight days) between Felixstowe and New York.
The AEE service rotation is: Manzanillo (Panama), Charleston (USA), New York (USA), Rotterdam (Netherlands), Bremerhaven (Germany), Felixstowe (UK), New York (USA), Charleston (USA) and Manzanillo (Panama).
The Alliance of APL, Mitsui OSK Lines and Hyundai Merchant Marine (HMM) has deployed high-reefer-capacity ships on the weekly service with an average effective capacity of 3200 TEU (20-foot equivalent units, the standard measure of containers).
APL will supply three of the vessels deployed and HMM and MOL will contribute one each. As with the Alliance’s APX service that already calls at Felixstowe, Maersk Line will take slots.
The first Eastbound vessel is expected to arrive at the Suffolk port on 24 March.
Commenting on the announcement made by the government today on proposals to launch a consultation on no fault dismissal rules, John Longworth, Director General of the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC), said:
“Employers have long argued that rules around dismissal do not work for business, so a new no fault dismissal route would be an extremely positive step forward, and would send the message that the government is serious about de-regulation. If these proposals are given the go ahead, it would allow for the swift resolution of a dismissal, and some firms would be willing to pay a premium to achieve this.
“This is a big step in the right direction, but it should be part of a package of reforms, including reforming redundancy rules and introducing tribunal fees for claimants. A substantial overhaul of employment regulations will give businesses confidence to invest and grow, and in turn drive economic recovery.”
Norfolk County Council today (Monday 2 October) confirmed that the A1151 Wroxham Road – the busiest route into the heart of the Norfolk Broads – will close at 8pm on Friday, 6 October, and is likely to stay closed until 6am on Monday 16th.
The closure to all traffic – including cyclists and pedestrians – is unavoidable because a wide trench has to be cut across Wroxham Road to allow the installation of a deep drainage culvert as part of construction of Norwich Northern Distributor Road. Thrust-boring under the road without a closure is not possible in this environmentally sensitive location, which includes the nearby fishing lakes at The Springs. There will be no access to the fishing lakes during the closure.
Work will be continuing throughout the ten nights and nine days of the closure. As well as construction of the culvert, the closure will be used to complete as much as possible of the A1151 Wroxham Road roundabout on the NDR.
Diversions
Light traffic will (from Norwich direction) be diverted via Norwich Ring Road, Salhouse Road and Green Lane West. However, the 7.5 tonne weight limit on Green Lane West means that HGVs – including those serving Rackheath Industrial Estate – must continue on Salhouse Road to Salhouse and use to the B1140 to re-join the A1151 at Wroxham. The diversions will operate in reverse for traffic heading towards Norwich.
Legal Order backs up Horsford right turn ban
A right turn ban from Church Street on to the B1149 Holt Road in Horsford today (Monday) became mandatory after a Temporary Traffic Order came into force. When Holt Road south of Horsford closed in August, an advisory right turn ban was introduced to encourage Horsford-bound traffic to loop around the nearby New Drayton Lane roundabout, with the aim of reducing queues on Church Street. This has only been partially successful, so Norfolk County Council has obtained a Legal Order to make the right turn ban mandatory and enforceable by the police.