Seafood bosses say ministers are ‘in denial’

Scottish seafood bosses have accused ministers of being “in denial” over the scale of the problem facing exporters post-Brexit.

The transport of seafood to the Continent has been severely disrupted by customs checks and paperwork since the Brexit transition period ended last month.

Industry insiders have estimated delays are costing the sector more than £1 million a day.

James Withers, chief executive at industry body Scotland Food and Drink, was scathing, telling MPs “the UK has created history in becoming the only country ever to impose economic sanctions on itself ”.

Mr Withers told the Scottish Affairs Committee: “There have been some catastrophic decisions taken to create enormous non-tariff barriers.

“We have ended up with a trading regime that has become complex, costly, slow, prone to breakdown at its best and, at worst, it leaves the door to the EU markets closed altogether.

“Businesses feel they have just been thrown to the wolves, we’ve had a dreadful first few weeks of trading in the post- Brexit world, there’s no way of sugar-coating it.”

Mr Withers said the “biggest challenge” was convincing the UK Government to face up to the scale of the problem.

“The biggest single challenge we have just now is denial, denial from UK Government in particular to the scale of the problem.

“We can’t accept that this is short-term issues, that it’s teething problems, or even the statement from Defra this week that trade continues to flow smoothly, because it doesn’t.”

Scottish Seafood Association boss Jimmy Buchan described January as a “car crash” for exporters. “It’s not teething problems, it is bureaucratic problems and we need to get (them) resolved right now,” he said.

Boris Johnson announced a £23 million compensation scheme for the fishing industry last month.

Asked if the package is adequate, Mr Withers said: “It’s a sticking plaster at best; the seafood business has been losing about £1m a day in sales.”

Mr Buchan said: “The £23m is welcome. Is it enough? I don’t think it is”.

Both men called on the UK Government to negotiate a “grace period” for the seafood sector while bureaucratic problems are resolved, something that has so far been ruled out.

Sir, – I was horrified to read that Boris Johnson went ahead with his visit to the Valneva vaccine factory in Livingston last week despite having been advised beforehand that there had been a number of coronavirus cases at the site earlier in January.

Bearing in mind the fact that the prime minister was travelling from a part of the country where the infection rate was high and the extra infectious ‘ variant ‘ mutation was causing huge concern, his trip to Scotland appears totally incompatible with his own government’s ‘stay at home unless your journey is absolutely essential’ advice. Alan Woodcock. Osborne Place, Dundee.