With ASKAR SHEIBANI

Chair, DBF & CEO Comtek Network Systems UK Ltd

The second wave of the pandemic has created further uncertainties and thrown away the credibility of all the economic forecasts for 2021.

Because of the nature and unpredictability of this virus plus the end of the Brexit transition period; it would be unwise to trust any future economic forecasts at this particular time.

If you read all the major forecasts from organisations such as Credit Suisse, Goldman Sachs, and Morgan Stanley, all the predictions are looking very grim for the UK's economy. The European Union, the UK's largest trading region, is also going through major economic challenges.

I believe that businesses have two simple choices: either accept the doom and gloom and prepare for the worst, or inject some fire, determination and vigour into their souls and fight it.

In my opinion, we need to get back to the basics of good business principles and concentrate on how to identify new markets within the UK and abroad. We have amazing businesses in North Wales. I am convinced that if we continue to support each other, move outside our comfort zones and be creative, we will identify great opportunities.

To start with, we must all pledge to try our utmost to purchase locally. Through the DBF we will undertake to create a directory of all the businesses on our website to make it easier to identify a local supplier.

The DBF will also launch a buy locally campaign. We need to encourage the locally-based public sectors such as the NHS and councils to procure locally too.

Our councils, when awarding planning consent for any major constructions, could make the consent conditional to using local suppliers. Welsh Government should encourage all public sectors within Wales to procure their services from local communities. These common-sense measures would cost nothing to the taxpayer but will help local businesses and create jobs.

The government's financial support will eventually disappear. However, the government's non-financial support must continue.

We are going through colossal economic and social turmoil. I believe that both the UK and Welsh governments must disregard all their differences and work very closely together to continue to support business.

We can advise both the governments at a grassroots level in adopting more pragmatic and common-sense policies which will help businesses to trade without any hindrance and barriers. Businesses know exactly where these trade barriers are and how they could be removed or modified. There are urgent conversations to be had right now.

To sum it up, we need;

1. A pledge from all businesses to purchase locally whenever possible.

2. A pledge from the public sectors to embrace locally-focused procurement policies.

3. Local governments to use their planning powers to encourage investors to use local labour and suppliers as much as possible.

4. A simplification of the export licence and customs bureaucracy.

The above are simple, pragmatic and doable. They will bring communities together, create a sensible, sustainable, economic culture and much needed employment opportunities.