A report from the National Audit Office shows that the UK has even more work to do before post-Brexit checks can be carried out on EU imports next year. According to the report, the traders are not prepared to import controls and the departments of emergency to act as a government for the release of the full controls on EU goods, not three times, had to be deferred.
The delays have created a transition period for traders. By July 1, 2022, everything should be in place, with a number of requirements coming into force in January.
Gareth Davies, head of the NAO: “We see that a significant achievement is required from the government, departments and third parties to deliver the initial capacity needed at the border at the end of the transition period. This was done partly with interim measures and by delaying the introduction of full import controls. There is still a lot of work to be done before there is a model to ensure that international trade agreements are respected. Then there will be no more temporary rules and it will all be less complicated for cross-border workers.”
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But, of course, the first thing the UK has to ask is whether they want a second type of shipping. That’s the question asked by the International Centre for Strategic Research, a think tank in the Netherlands in Brussels. Its members include the United States, Canada and Australia.
In a memo sent to EU trade ministers on Tuesday, a G6 chief warned that the EU is not ready for post-Brexit checks on its shipments while the G6 is “on track” to set up a commission on trade. So, that means the G6 may have to put in the extra work by signing a deal with the EU.
The EU already has a free trade agreement with Britain, the United States and the United Kingdom.
The report also cites the issue of a link between EU-EU trade and inflation. Under Article 50 of the EU Bill of Rights (“BOP”), free-trade agreements between the EU and third countries should “encourage the free movement of goods around the world” even as they are still illegal.
The NAO also now warns that UK ports do not yet have the infrastructure to carry out controls next year, due to uncertainty about the nature of the necessary agreements, difficulties in finding the right locations for these facilities, including in Scotland and Wales.