Education doubts see UK sink in world talent ranking

The UK workforce is suffering from a significant level of brain drain with many companies at risk of losing their top talent, according to new research.

Additionally, found the study of more than 4,000 business leaders, foreign workers no longer saw the UK as a desirable destination, leaving it behind countries behind such as Estonia, Cyprus and Kuwait.

Reasons for people turning their back on the UK, according to the Institute for Management Development (IMD)’s World Competitiveness Center, range from the cost of living to perceptions that it has become isolationist and offers poor education.

The UK ranks 35th of 64 major world economies, down seven places on last year, the analysis stated.

Switzerland topped the rankings for the 10th year running.

The IMD study aims to provide insights about how the world’s leading economies educate, train, and attract their workforce.

This year’s IMD world talent ranking saw Qatar, the Czech Republic and Malaysia overtake the UK in their ability to develop and hold onto their workforce, as the top spots were dominated by its northern European neighbours. Switzerland, Luxembourg, Iceland, Belgium, and the Netherlands make up the top five.

The research points out that the UK’s fading pull in the international labour market stems primarily from concerns about the quality of life, with its cost of living only being higher in nine other countries.

The UK’s decline in the world talent ranking was also marked by concerns about its…