Sometimes it sits quietly purring in a corner of my life.
Sometimes it endearingly rubs itself up on the legs of people I encounter in a
valiant attempt to get stroked. Sometimes it voraciously demands to be fed,
meowing incessantly. It is therefore rather wondrous when someone bolsters ones
ego without any provocation. It is the equivalent to a kindly old lady stopping
on her way to the shops to give 2 minutes of unwarranted love to the smelly Tom
Cat sitting on a neighbours garden wall. The cat can’t believe his luck, but he
laps up all the love as if he actually had done something to deserve it (he
never has).
I had such a moment earlier this week. I received a call
from an engineering student at Leeds University, Josh Maillings. Josh had been
recommended to speak to me in my capacity as a ‘water expert’. My inner Tom Cat
positively bristled with pride. Josh is writing a dissertation on the effects
of Brexit on innovation in the UK water sector. Years of being a professional
consultant have taught me that for every technical question there are always
three responses and I wasn’t about to deviate from this universal truth. I dug
deep and gave my three responses.
- Firstly, the weakening of the £ was likely to mean costs will rise since a significant proportion of the water supply chain is procured from overseas. This is good for innovation since increased pressure to reduce costs inevitably moves an organisation’s risk appetite upwards. Upon reflection I now realise that this answer is not particularly helpful. I didn’t actually answer the question. The weakening of the £ may be partly due to Brexit, but it is probably more influenced by activities in the US. For failing to answer the exam question I deserve a mere 2/10 for my response. [Interestingly, the smart money (apparently) says that if Mr Trump follows through on his infrastructure investment promises by, for example, building a 100ft high garden wall to keep out the neighbours, then the £ will drop even further. Alternatively if he decides to start WWIII then the whole topic is mute since we will have other more pressing things to worry about than a bit of FX loss.]
- Secondly, Brexit is likely to lead to the rejection (or at least the watering down) of various EU environmental legislation. This will remove one of the key drivers behind many environmental ‘technology advancement’ programmes. This is obviously bad for innovation. Unfortunately I now realise I may be wrong with this conclusion also. Perhaps the UK will use Brexit to adopt even more stringent levels of environmental protection. This appears unlikely, but I do remain optimistically hopeful that, irrespective of the legislative changes, water companies will not weaken in their resolve to make the right decisions about protecting and preserving their local environment. Call me naïve but I believe we are still an industry dominated by good people who care deeply about preserving our natural resources. Mostly.
- Thirdly, no discussion around Brexit can avoid the topic of immigration. The water sector relies significantly on overseas workers, in particular for blue/grey collar activities (plumbers, leakage technicians). As we tighten our immigration rules, this resource pool will reduce, increased demand will push up salaries, which in turn will drive a desire for increased automation. This is good for innovation. Yet again on reflection I realise this conclusion is oversimplified and probably wrong. Our dependence on overseas workers is not just restricted to the blue/grey collar activities. I struggle to think of a single strong competent technical team, in particular in R&D, that does not rely upon a diverse multinational team. Some of those overseas brains are startlingly good. Without them we will have lost something rather special.
Regular readers of this blog (both of them) can attest to
the insatiable nature of my ego, and therefore will appreciate my desire to
reach out for more informed perspectives on the whole Brexit/Water/Innovation
conundrum. I will share any responses to this blog with Josh, taking just a
little bit of credit for having provided the communication channel. See it as a
friendly scratching of my feline ego chin. Or if the fancy takes you, see it as
a chance to let your own personal Tom Cat get some satisfaction, while at the
same time helping a hard working student in Leeds.
Just remember though, Tom Cats can be difficult to manage.
They roam unrestrained over territories that are not their own, they are
astonishing indiscriminate in their hunt for gratification, and every now and
then they do something that requires someone else to do the cleaning up. Tom
Cats are not ideal pets. Treat yours carefully.
This blog, and previous editions, can be found at http://notesfrompiers.blogspot.co.uk/
