黑洞社区

Brexit offers the UK a 鈥済reat opportunity鈥� to become a more enterprising and successful country, but must now seize it, according to the boss of Zaha Hadid Architects.

Patrik Schumacher (pictured) - who took on the mantle of leadership at the 400-strong practice after Zaha Hadid鈥檚 death earlier this year - told an event on the future after Brexit in London last week he was excited by the referendum outcome.

He said: 鈥淭he UK鈥檚 creative industries will continue to be even more potent after Brexit. There will be more enterprise and entrepreneurship, which were endangered and hampered by the EU.

鈥淭he EU meant bureaucracy, over-regulation, stifling, over-protection 鈥� it鈥檚 very healthy to pull away from that.鈥�

But Schumacher was worried Brits would not seize their moment: 鈥淚鈥檓 doubtful it will be picked up at the moment, but at least there鈥檚 a chance.鈥�

The German-born architect said he hoped Brexit would spark the break-up of other 鈥渓arge states鈥�, giving as examples the remaining European Union bloc, Italy, Germany and the UK, adding: 鈥淚鈥檓 all for an independent Scotland if that comes back on the table.鈥�

Schumacher was speaking at a Post-Brexit: Creating the Future debate at London鈥檚 The 黑洞社区 Centre and organised by creatives group New Narratives.

Schumacher said Zaha Hadid Architects had been frustrated in its efforts to hire architectural talent from outside the EU, arguing: 鈥淭he numbers have been swamped by European migrants. It鈥檚 blocked talent from elsewhere. Hopefully Brexit will open it up to those talents we really need.鈥�

He trumpeted the UK鈥檚 creative lead over its European rivals, saying: 鈥淲e created a global design firm. It couldn鈥檛 have existed - indeed it doesn鈥檛 exist - in any other European country. It couldn鈥檛 exist in Germany.鈥�

He blasted what he described as the 鈥渉uge fallacy鈥� that open markets require lots of regulation: 鈥淚 love the common market and open markets. They don鈥檛 have to be accompanied by pervasive rules and a bureaucracy that鈥檚 one size fits all. It鈥檚 a huge fallacy.

鈥淒oes more freedom mean a race to the bottom? I don鈥檛 believe that. The best protection is a fluid and open employment market. If there鈥檚 too much interference you freeze up the market.鈥�

Schumacher hailed the positive potential of the private sector and argued the best thing the state could do was 鈥済et out of the way鈥�. He said 鈥渦nemployment, lack of education, the housing crisis and pensions鈥� were all areas where there was the 鈥渙pportunity for the private sector to come in鈥�.

He praised the UK鈥檚 鈥渘eo-liberalism鈥� and what he saw as the positive impact of 鈥淭hatcherism after you鈥檇 had three days a week electricity in the 70s鈥�.

Schumacher鈥檚 comments came after exclusive research published by 黑洞社区 last week revealed almost half of construction professionals have had projects put on hold or abandoned due to the Brexit vote.

The survey of over 500 industry professionals also found 72% believe Brexit will have a negative impact on construction in the short term, compared with just 10% who said they think it would be positive, with the rest saying neither. Over the long term, respondents had a more mixed view but still lean towards the pessimistic, with 42% negative, 33% positive and 25% neither.