Sir Martin Sorrell, the boss of the world’s largest advertising group, has said leaving the EU would cost his business influence in 40% of its top markets.
Debating the future of the UK’s role in the EU at Ad Week Europe on Tuesday, Sorrell said that from a WPP point of view, he is “absolutely positive” that leaving the EU would only have a negative business impact for adland.
“We would lose influence in four of our top 10 markets,” Sorrell said. “I know clients will close plants, jobs will go. The question is how long that will go on for.”
During a keynote interview with an often confused sounding Bernie Eccelstone – who said he would not vote in the June referendum, but if he did he would “get the hell out” – the WPP boss put forward a passionate case for the UK remaining in the EU.
Sorrell, a second generation immigrant whose grandparents came to the UK from Russia in 1899, said that the issues surrounding the EU referendum were often “emotional” for him, but that from a business perspective staying in the Union was economically more viable than leaving.
Meanwhile, Ecclestone, who has a net worth of $3.9 billion, claimed that immigrants have not made any net contribution to Britain – a view Sorrell said he “violently disagreed” with, alongside Ecclestone’s views on Putin (he “should run Europe” because “he gets the job done”) Trump and female F1 drivers (“even if they could drive the cars, would anyone take them seriously?”)
Uncertainty over a possible Brexit is already taking its toll on marketing budgets, with the latest IPA Bellwether report revealing a dip in confidence across the advertising industry.
In the first quarter of 2016, financial prospects dropped to the lowest level since the start of 2013, while optimism regarding companies’ own financial prospects slumped significantly to mark the lowest level since late 2012.
