Half of Scottish SMEs are geared up for Brexit but confidence is low as they still seek a U-turn

More interestingly, 47 per cent reported that they were substantially prepared for the planned leave date of 29 March, suggesting Scottish SMEs just want to get on with running their businesses and would like the Government to ‘just get on with it.”

Citibase reveals that despite being substantially prepared, 61 per cent of Scottish SMES still would opt to change their decision on Brexit, restoring the relationship between the UK and the EU to its state before the referendum took place.

Part of the Brexit preparation includes de-risking when it comes to office contracts, with 59 per cent preferring office contract lengths of less than three years.

Additionally, when considering an office, SMEs rated flexible, short-term contracts (49 per cent) and the ability to easily change the size of your space (47 per cent) as some of the top priorities. While often grabbing headlines, facilities such as on site bars and cafes (12 per cent) and lifestyle facilities such as ping pong tables (14 per cent) both ranked poorly in terms of importance, suggesting that Scottish SMEs mostly crave flexibility rather than added extras.

Financially, 57 per cent of Scottish SMEs have seen revenues rise or stay the same since the referendum, slightly up from 52 per cent last quarter, showing that despite the uncertainty, business continues to take place. Furthermore, a 31 per cent have found it harder to attract investment or raise funding, which is down 4 per cent from last quarter.

With Theresa May‘s imminent departure, Nicola Sturgeon remains the top pick for PM amongst Scottish SMES at 24 per cent up from 21 per cent last quarter. Jeremy Corbyn came in at close second at 22 per cent In terms of who Scottish SMEs would like to see lead Brexit negotiations, Jeremy Corbyn came out on top at only 18 per cent. Other suggestions included Richard Branson, Alan Sugar and even Kermit the Frog, suggesting Scottish SMEs do not have much confidence in the current Government.

Only 16 per cent of Scottish SMEs think the government provided enough support to SMES throughout the Brexit uncertainty. Furthermore, only 14 per cent of UK SMEs think Theresa May negotiated a good deal for SMEs and 59 per cent believe the latest extension will not result in a better deal for UK SMEs.

Steve Jude, Citibase CEO, said: “This quarter’s results show that despite Brexit uncertainty, there remains a real sense of resilience amongst the Scottish SME community, however their confidence in the government is at a low point. Scottish SMEs also still remain cautious about the future, therefore it comes as no surprise that office contacts between one and three years are the most desired as they crave flexibility, affordability and agility.”