The DMA at Policy Exchange: The State of the Union

At no other time in recent political history have constitutional issues remained at the centre of political debate for so long. Brexit discussions, debate around Scottish independence and Northern Ireland’s political stalemate occupy more time in the Houses of Parliament than the economy, health and jobs.

The speakers were a mix of academics, politicians, journalists and policy experts. A fairly vast range of opinions on a multitude of issues (which inspired an equally large range of audience responses) reflected the dissonance in political debate that pervades the UK today.

The DMA recognises the difficulties that the Brexit discussion poses. While Michael Gove advocated a hard split with the EU, most accepted that some ties needed to be maintained. The DMA has worked with the government to argue for membership of the Digital Single Market, as accessibility to European markets is of great value to members across the UK.

The most popular speech of the day came from Ruth Davidson MSP, leader of the Scottish Conservative party, who argued that London needed to cede its monopoly of politics, culture and business to allow them to spread throughout the UK.

This is something the DMA also recognises and advocates. Even though our headquarters are in London, we recognise the need for our industry to grow across the UK. As such, we have regional hubs in Scotland, Wales, Northern, Central and Western England and London.

The DMA continues to evaluate the ever-evolving political circumstances in the UK in order to support and advise our members in the best way possible. We are growing our networks and becoming ever-more present in political discussions about relevant issues.

There are many articles about the DMA’s work in policy across the UK. Scroll through our webpage or contact one of our External Affairs team to find out more.