So today sees the first post-Brexit check on goods from the EU into the UK.
This time there are question marks over the government's readiness. In a leaked presentation seen by the Financial Times, the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) outlined a plan to phase in controls, with physical inspections initially "set to zero" for all but the highest-risk products.
The government hit back, insisting that checks would be commencing on 30 April, but indicated that they would focus initially on higher-risk products, and scale up checks on other goods in a "sensible and controlled way".
The shambles continues. But not just the shambles. This is having a very real impact and there are going to be more:
The first phase, which began at the end of January this year, required importers of most meat, dairy and plant to secure health certificates for products before they could enter the UK. This has already created problems for some importers.
Not only has it added extra costs to orders – the certificates can cost up to £200 for each product line – but some suppliers have struggled to find vets to carry out the checks or simply turned their backs on supplying the UK, unwilling to deal with the added bureaucracy. The result has been gaps on some deli shelves.
The move to physical checks will be more disruptive. Inspections will involve some lorries being held at the border. When the EU began controlling imports in 2021, UK exporters were left counting the cost of containers of meat rotting in European ports. The government has said the checks will enhance the country's biosecurity, and protect farmers and the country's food security from costly diseases.
And;
World Trade Organization rules statethat UK trade borders with the EU need to match those with the rest of the world, so as not to give the bloc a trading advantage.
But trade will be more costly. The government itself has admitted that businesses will have to pay £330m a year, which could add 0.2% to food inflation over three years. A recent Allianz Trade report put the cost as high as £2bn, with a 0.2% increase in headline national inflation.
A year. Every year. From now on.
Meanwhile on the other side of the EU/UK border:
Ireland has landed a €700m (£600m) Brexit bonanza with a steep increase in tax revenues flowing from customs duties now applicable to imports of clothing, food and other goods from Great Britain.
Before Brexit, Britain enjoyed customs-free exports to Ireland and the rest of the EU because it was part of the single market and customs union.
But when Boris Johnson sealed a hard Brexit and quit the single market, it meant fresh controls, checks and duties would be payable on exports to the EU.
New data in Ireland shows a 90% jump in customs duty receipts in Ireland between 2020 and 2021 when Brexit came into force.
Taking the pandemic into account and comparing 2019 with the three post-Brexit years, a significant jump in revenues can be seen.
Interesting this:
Not all revenues remain in Ireland. Under EU arrangements, a member state can retain 25% of duties elected, with the remainder going into the bloc's overall central budget.
Is this impacting on people here and their purchases?
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