Britain to Spend an Extra £2.1bn on No-deal Brexit Planning
Britain said it was ramping up preparations for a no-deal Brexit by spending an extra 2.1 billion pounds to stockpile medicines, hire more border officials and fund one of the biggest peacetime advertising campaigns.
This is as an EU Commission official yesterday confirmed that Britain’s new chief Brexit negotiator, David Frost, met with senior EU officials during a trip to Brussels.
Spokeswoman for the European Commission Mina Andreeva made this known yesterday.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who took power last week, has pledged to leave the trading bloc without an agreement in three months unless, the EU agrees to renegotiate the deal agreed by his predecessor Theresa May.
In his first major policy announcement, new finance minister, Sajid Javid said the outlay would allow the government to increase training for customs officials, hire more staff to deal with an expected increase in passport applications and improve infrastructure around ports.
“With 92 days until the UK leaves the EU it’s vital that we intensify our planning to ensure we are ready,” Javid said.
“We want to get a good deal that abolishes the anti-democratic backstop. But if we can’t get a good deal, we’ll have to leave without one.”
Wrenching the United Kingdom out of the EU without a deal means there would be no formal transition arrangement to cover everything from post-Brexit pet passports to customs arrangements on the Northern Irish border.
Many investors say a no-deal Brexit would send shock waves through the world economy, tip Britain into a recession, roil financial markets and weaken London’s position as the preeminent international financial centre.
Supporters of Brexit say that while there would be some shortterm difficulties, the disruption of a no-deal Brexit has been overplayed and that in the long-term, the United Kingdom would thrive if it left the EU.
The finance ministry, which said the new money will “turbo-charge” no-deal preparations, will provide an immediate cash boost of 1.1 billion pounds and make a further one billion pounds available for government departments.
This will also include the devolved administrations in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland.
This means the government has in total allocated 6.3 billion pounds to prepare for a no-deal exit, including 4.2 billion pounds of funding for this financial year.
The ministry said, among other initiatives, 434 million pounds would be spent to ensure vital supplies of medicines and medical products can be brought into the country, including hiring additional freight capacity, warehousing and stockpiling.
To get people and businesses ready for a no-deal Brexit, 138 million pounds will be spent on one of the biggest peacetime advertising campaigns and provide extra consular support for citizens living overseas.