Minister’s letter raises concerns about chaos on the UK’s borders
AN EXPLOSIVE letter from International Trade Secretary Liz Truss to senior Cabinet colleagues has intensified concerns about chaos on the UK’s borders when we leave the EU Customs Union and Single Market at the end of the year.
The letter, leaked to the Business Insider website, expresses Ms Truss’ concern at the UK Government’s current plan not to introduce full border checks on goods until July 2021.
Addressed to Chancellor Rishi Sunak and Cabinet Office Minister Michael Gove, it cites four “key areas of concern” about the Government’s plans to leave EU trading and custom rules at the end of 2020.
According to Ms Truss, the plans could create a series of logistical, political and reputational risks for the Government, including a legal challenge from the World Trade Organisation (WTO), increased smuggling from the EU if not all UK ports are ready to carry out checks, concerns over the Union if EU tariffs are applied to all goods heading to Northern Ireland by “default”, and the undermining of the UK’s international trade policy.
She stated that a failure to make sure all ports are ready to carry out the full range of checks on incoming goods by January could lead to smuggling into the UK.
“I would like assurances that we are able to deliver full control at these ports by July 2021 and that plans are in place from January to mitigate the risk of goods being circumvented from ports implementing full controls,” she wrote.
She also said the UK would “be vulnerable to WTO challenge” because of its border policy. This is because the UK plans to temporarily give the EU preferential treatment, which could be a breach of WTO rules if there is no UK-EU free-trade agreement in place.
Ms Truss also suggested that, as of January 1, all goods going to Northern Ireland from elsewhere in the world could have the EU tariff applied by default, as the system for applying both UK and EU tariffs is not expected to be ready on time.
She states in the letter: “I understand that the digital delivery of the dual tariff system [both EU and UK tariffs] in Northern Ireland is a high risk and that HMRC [the UK taxman] are planning to apply the EU tariff as a default to all imports in Northern
Ireland on January 1, 2021.”
She went on to state that she was worried it would anger unionists in the province, telling Mr Gove and Mr Sunak that “this is very concerning as this may call into question Northern Ireland’s place in the UK customs territory”.
Ms Truss concluded: “We need to ensure that the UK border is effective and compliant with international rules, maintaining our credibility with trading partners, the WTO and with business.”
She stated that the UK trade department needed a “clear view of operational plans, timescales and risks going forward”.
Former Welsh Labour MEP Derek Vaughan said: “Liz Truss is a hardline Brexiteer and it would not have been easy for her to write a letter like this.
“It shows there is deep anxiety in the Cabinet now about how things are going to play out.
“It’s the UK Government itself which was determined to end the transitional period at the end of 2020, and they now find themselves in difficulty because they do not have the IT or infrastructure that would enable regulatory checks to be carried out.
“Their plan simply to have no import checks means they might as well put up signs at the borders saying ‘Welcome all Smugglers’.
“But if they don’t have checks in place, they are very likely to face a legal challenge from the WTO. Without checks, goods from all over the world that ought to have import duties levied on them will be able to avoid the charges. Other countries that are playing by the rules will complain and the WTO will go to court. This would all be extremely embarrassing for the UK’s trading reputation.”
Mr Vaughan said the best solution would be for the UK Government to change its position on membership of the Customs Union and Single Market.
“The referendum result related to membership of the EU. We could abide by the result by leaving the political institutions of the EU while retaining membership of the Single Market and Customs Union. That would save us having to worry about the disruption of trade caused by border checks and import tariffs.”
The UK Government is due to publish its plan for how the borders will work on Monday.
Shadow Cabinet Office Minister Rachel Reeves said: “This email confirms fears that several ministers have been making things up as they go with a lack of awareness of the real-world consequences of border policies they’ve had four years to develop.
“At the general election people were promised an ‘oven-ready’ deal to be implemented by the end of this year, not chaos, confusion and a further risk to jobs.”
A spokesman for the UK Government said: “We do not comment on leaks.”
Alistair Carmichael, the Liberal Democrats’ spokesman for Brexit and foreign affairs, called on the UK Government to explain the letter to Parliament, telling Business Insider:
“At a time when the UK is already facing the Covid-19 crisis, we cannot afford to crash out of the EU without a deal in place or to accept bad deal.
“Time and again this Government has brushed off concerns about the damaging consequences of Brexit for trade and the border on the island of Ireland. This explosive email clearly reveals the panic in the dark corridors of Whitehall.
“It is essential the Government publishes detailed impact assessments immediately and come before Parliament and be honest with the public.”
Naomi Smith, the chief executive of Best For Britain, a group campaigning for a comprehensive UK trade deal with the EU, said: “The Government ignored concerns that we wouldn’t be ready to end the transition period on December 31, despite numerous warnings from business and trade bodies.
“This email proves that those concerns were valid and the senior Cabinet minister trusted with Britain’s future trade shares them.”