‘Unacceptable risk’ customs facilities not ready for Brexit, say MPs
11 December 2020
The Welsh Affairs Committee has warned there is a significant and unacceptable risk that neither Holyhead nor Fishguard/Pembroke will have appropriate inland facilities ready for the full implementation of new customs processes and checks following Brexit.
- Read the report summary
- Read the conclusions and recommendations
- Read the full report: Brexit and trade: implications for Wales
- Welsh Affairs Committee
In its latest report, which examines the implications of new trading relationships for Wales, the Committee also expressed concern about the readiness and capacity of Welsh ports and accompanying infrastructure to carry out thousands of new checks a day. These checks, a consequence of the UK’s new trading arrangements with the EU resulting from Brexit, would be needed regardless of whether a deal is reached with the EU or not. Checks and process are due to be fully implemented from 1 July 2021 following a six-month phase-in period, a move the report welcomed.
Particular attention is paid to the potential implications for the Port of Holyhead of a combination of new, and untested, IT systems and new checks and processes. Holyhead, the second largest roll-on/roll-off’ port in the UK after Dover, deals with around 450,000 freight units per year. In case of delays caused by the new processes, and lacking capacity on site to stack significant numbers of lorries on site, the port is partly reliant for its Brexit preparations on the selection and construction of inland clearance facilities.
The report expresses deep concern that with just months remaining until full implementation, the decisions on the location of the inland facility for Holyhead Port and the equivalent facilities in South-west Wales have yet to be taken. The Committee recommends that the UK Government publish its contingency plans for how checks will be conducted on goods arriving at Holyhead and Fishguard/Pembroke in the event that the inland facilities are not operational for July. It also calls for clarity from the UK Government as to whether its contingency plans include checks at port and detail the measures it would take to minimise the disruption such a step would entail.
The Government's achievement of reaching a free trade agreement with Japan in October was welcomed by the Committee. They pointed to the 'welcome level of consultation between the UK and Welsh Governments' during negotiations for the Japan deal as an approach to build upon in future trade negotiations which culminated in protected geographical indicators granted to 15 Welsh products. Progress made in trade negotiations with other non-EU countries and for accession to the CPTPP trading block was also welcomed by the Committee.
Stephen Crabb MP, the Chair of the Welsh Affairs Committee said:
"Whether a deal is reached with the EU or not, there will be new processes and checks in place for trade between the U.K. and EU. But, with just two weeks until the end of the transition period, decisions over key infrastructure in Wales for carrying out these checks have still not been made and critical IT systems are still to be fully tested and operational. While the Government has stepped-up its communications efforts to alert traders to the imminent changes, there are still too many businesses unaware of how their trade with the EU may be affected.
Wales is far from ready for the end of the Brexit transition period. We are particularly concerned about the implications of this for Holyhead, one of the UK’s busiest ports for trade with the EU. There are significant risks of delays and disruption to the smooth flow of trade through the port.
It is vital that UK and Welsh Governments now work together with urgency and focus to make the necessary decisions on the location of facilities for carrying out new checks on goods moving through Holyhead, Fishguard and Pembroke Dock. Even if decisions are finalised this month, and planning permission expedited, there is an unacceptable level of risk that neither North nor South-west Wales will have appropriate inland facilities ready for the full introduction of border checks in July 2021. It’s therefore critical that the UK Government publishes its contingency plans for how checks will be conducted if neither facility is ready in time."
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