Fears run high of chaos at our ports if Brexit plan is botched
The UK government has put forward plans to stop Brexit plunging Ireland into chaos, writes David Williamson. But prominent Welsh figures are concerned about any threat to vital trade links with Ireland and fear major delays at Wales’ ports...
FEAR remains high that Brexit will make it harder for goods to flow between Wales and the Republic of Ireland, despite the UK government launching proposals aimed at minimising obstacles to trade and travel.
Welsh businesses do not want links with a major trading partner weakened and there are concerns that Welsh ports could be hit with “chaos” if goods arriving from Ireland are subject to customs checks.
A former Welsh Government minister said it was “scandalous” that ministers in London had not listened to Wales.
However, the UK government will hope that its new position paper will ensure a deal can be reached with the EU that avoids the need for any new “border infrastructure” to be erected and allows free movement of people between the two countries to continue.
The UK government wants to stop tensions flaring up that could endanger not just the economy but the peace process. It is determined to avoid erecting border posts and wants to preserve the “invisible and open border between Northern Ireland and Ireland”.
During the so-called Troubles, “customs posts were frequently the subject of bombing attacks. Border crossings and checkpoints were manned by a very substantial military and security presence, including a series of ‘watchtowers’ in border areas, and a number of border roads were blocked by the security forces”.
One bold proposal is that small traders crossing between the Republic and Northern Ireland could be exempt from customs requirements.
There had been speculation that the government would propose using number-plate recognition technology to try to keep track of trade between the north and south. Instead, there is a proposal for a mass exemption from customs duties.
The paper argues that “many of the movements of goods across [the border] by smaller traders cannot be properly categorised and treated as economically significant international trade”.
It notes that in 2015 more than 80% of trade was carried out by micro, small and medium-sized businesses.
Larger business could make retrospective declarations either online or at their premises.
New technology along the 310 miles of border would become a target for dissident Republicans, and Prime Minister Theresa May has said there “should be no physical border infrastructure of any kind on either side of the border between Northern Ireland and Ireland”.
However, Sinn Fein’s Stormont leader, Michelle O’Neill, said she was “not comforted”, adding: “[Whilst] the British government might say they don’t want to see any kind of hard border or technology put in place, it will not be within their gift to deliver that; it will be the other European member states, who clearly think and believe we need to see customs controls.”
The government also wants to preserve the Common Travel Area (CTA) – which allows people to travel between both countries and guarantees access to public services.
Reciprocal rights between the UK and Ireland include:
The right to enter and live in either state without permission;
the right to work without obtaining permission; the right to study; access to social welfare entitlements and benefits; access to health services; and the right to vote in local and parliamentary elections.
However, the government has to do more than strike a deal with the Republic. It has to reach an agreement with the EU, and a new customs relationship with the 27-member union is needed.
The position paper is unlikely to quell concerns about the impact of Brexit on the Welsh economy.
Former Welsh Government minister and ex-Rhondda AM Leighton Andrews said: “Ireland and Wales have shared strong business, academic and development links over decades. Brexit puts this at risk. It is scandalous that the UK Tory government has neither understood the dangers of Brexit for the Good Friday Agreement nor listened to the Welsh and Irish governments.”
Plaid Cymru Arfon MP Hywel Williams argued the UK should stay in the existing EU customs union.
He said: “More than 70% of Irish cargo comes through Wales, including produce from Northern Ireland, because it offers the quickest route to the UK for exporters of perishable goods. Welsh ports will potentially face chaos and detrimental delays if these plans are carried through. It is quite clear that the only way to avoid disruption is for the UK to remain in the EU customs union.
“Plaid Cymru has been clear and consistent in its view that we must maintain single market and customs union membership and that Welsh jobs and trade must not be endangered by Brexit.”
Concern was also expressed by Liz Maher, president of the South & Mid Wales Chambers of Commerce.
She said: “With £844m worth of goods exported from Wales to Ireland last year it is a key export market for Welsh businesses. Any barriers between the UK and Ireland, whether physical or in terms of regulation, will damage the ability for businesses to trade across the Irish Sea.”
However, a spokesman for Ukip in Wales claimed people in Ireland would want to follow the UK out of the EU.
He said: “Trade existed between Wales and Ireland long before the European Union, and trade will go on between the two nations postBrexit. The Common Travel Area between the UK and the Republic of Ireland was established in 1923 – again, long before the creation of the European Union.
“Increasing numbers in Ireland want to follow us out of the EU. Irexit next stop.”
Wales TUC general secretary Martin Mansfield wants the UK to stay in the EU single market.
He said: “We want to see people’s jobs, rights and livelihoods protected... That means maintaining frictionless, tariff-free barrier-free trade with the rest of the EU. Our best chance of protecting this is by staying in the single market and the customs union.
“It is crucial that the rights of workers in Wales and Northern Ireland do not fall behind those enjoyed in the Republic and the rest of the EU.”
Prominent Welsh businessman Chris Sutton, lead director of property experts JLL, said: “The economic links to Ireland are vital, and not just for the prosperity of our ports and haulage businesses. There is also a significant amount of Irish investment in manufacturing and services across Wales and this must be protected. It cannot help our economic prospects if we erect trade barriers that would inhibit future investment from Ireland.”
A Welsh Government spokesman said: “Wales enjoys especially close and neighbourly relations with Ireland and this is reflected by high volumes of trade in both directions. The Welsh Government strongly supports the Good Friday Agreement, the Common Travel Area and the mutual benefits brought by close collaboration through the EU.
“Our top priority is for continued full and unfettered access for the UK to the single market and the customs union. This is in the best interests of business, who can then continue to trade without additional cost or friction, and it removes most of the potential complexities surrounding future trade over Ireland’s borders, both land and maritime.
“We are particularly concerned that trade flows through the Welsh ports are not damaged or disadvantaged relative to anywhere else in the UK. While we support retaining the soft land border in Ireland, and are clear about how this can be achieved, we would oppose any new arrangements which place Welsh ports at a disadvantage to any other part of the UK.”