The recent announcement by the Government of £10.5 million to help the Port of Dover, Eurostar and Eurotunnel to prepare for the upcoming EU digital border system has received only a muted welcome from Logistics UK.
The trade group has again raised the prospect of increased food prices and the potential for shortages in shops as a result of delays caused by the implementation of the new European Entry and Exit System (EES).
Policy director Kevin Green has warned that any delays in the processing of passengers caused by the introduction of EES will have a knock-on impact in terms of disruption and delay to freight on the Short Straits route, possibly adding costs of £1100 per truck.
The situation is set to be made worse, he went on, as the EES is being implemented by the EU in parallel with regulatory changes on border control being introduced by the UK on EU imports.
Safety and Security Declarations will be required for imports into Great Britain from the EU from October 2024 and this additional complication could, Mr Green argued, have a disastrous impact on the UK’s supply chain.
However, a leaked ministerial letter seen by the i Paper suggests that the threat of higher food prices is leading the Government to consider delaying until 1 July 2025 the introduction of controls which have already been postponed on several occasions by the previous administration..
The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) has refused to comment on the leaked letter from Environment Minister Baroness Hayman.
