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Updated: Government to spend £705m on post-Brexit customs…

[ July 13, 2020   //   ]

The government has announced £705 million funding for border infrastructure and after Brexit.

It includes up to £470 million for customs and inspection infrastructure including new border infrastructure inland.

The package includes £235 million investment in staffing and IT systems with £10 million to recruit around 500 more Border Force personnel and £20 million for new equipment, £100 million to develop HMRC systems and technology to ensure that new controls can be fully implemented in the ro ro environment. There is also £15 million to build new data infrastructure to enhance border management and flow.

This package is on top of the £84 million already provided in grants for training and IT customs intermediaries to handle the expected upsurge in customs declarations.

Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster Michael Gove said: “With or without further agreement with the EU, this £705 million will ensure that the necessary infrastructure, tech and border personnel are in place so that our traders and the border industry are able to manage the changes and seize the opportunities as we lay the foundations for the world’s most effective and secure border.”

On 1 January 2021 the transition period with the European Union will end and the UK will leave the single market and customs union, regardless of the agreement the UK reaches with the European Union on its future trade relationship.

The government will also launch a new public information campaign which will include detailed guidance for traders and hauliers explaining what they may need to do to prepare for the end of the transition period.

It has also published a Border Operating Model outlining how customs clearance will be managed after Brexit. As outlined in the previously published Cabinet Office statement, controls will be phased in, with full declarations required for controlled and excise goods from 1 January 2021, physical checks for high-risk animals and plants and export declarations for all goods. From April 2021, all products of animal origin and regulated plants and products will require pre-notification and health documentation.

Finally, from July 2021 all goods will require full customs declarations and pay tariffs at the point of import, and full Safety and Security declarations will then be required. Commodities subject to sanitary and phytosanitary controls will also have to be presented at Border Control Posts and there will be an increase in checks and sampling.

BIFA director general Robert Keen said that the Border Operating Model suggested a more cohesive approach to managing the UK’s trade flows and regulatory procedures with the EU: “Importers/exporters, in particular those that have previously only traded with the EU; really need to consider what they need to do, collect data, appoint someone to act on their behalf and give the intermediary the necessary information.
“Government appears to have woken up to the fact that Customs procedures are complicated and are not simply about ticking a few boxes.”
However, BIFA remains concerned that the information was not made available to the trade earlier and that some of details appear to be at the conceptual stage, with detail lacking.
He added: “The recruitment of staff qualified and experienced in Customs procedures, and the lack of available time to train newcomers, which is not a five-minute job.”
FTA’s head of international policy Alex Veitch said: “It is good to have confirmation of a large proportion of the detail of how goods are expected to move between the UK and EU from the start of next year.  We are advising our members to do all they can to get Brexit ready.”

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