The bluff called

The UK Government's bluff has failed, and one by one their red lines are bing rubbed out. First of all, acceptance there has to be an arbitration mechanism between the two sides. There is no real reason that the UCJ is a wrong choice for this, just that it has European in its title, and that's enough to get the gammons boiling.

Meanwhile, back home, the Goverment has announced clearer details of how exports are going to work with clarification or more lorry parks/clearance centres in Kent and around the country. Here in Kent, Dover gets a lorry park, Ashford gets a second one, while Ebbsfleet near Dartford gets a lorry park and a vetinary clearance centre.

You lucky people.

Gammons said the UK was full, but not full enough to make room for ten new lorry parks; who knew?

"Government about to announce new facilities for inland customs, regulatory veterinary checks in Kent at Ebbsfleet, at Holyhead and north Weald. A transit facility in Warrington, and further sites sought too. New 138 pg “Border Operating Model” detailing post single market & customs unions checks/ paperwork/ formalities and how are to be carried out on previously seamless GB-EU border, now published. Govt still concerned about trader preparedness for Jan 1, Detail new “inland clearance sites” for Jan where EU imports that need wet stamp on carnet, or under transit, or under traffic management will occur, “where ports do not have the space”

Ebbsfleet International
North Weald Airfield
Sevington
Warrington

Dover, Holyhead by July

These are the new infrastructure requirements to operate the new customs border with the EU - all by July, some in Jan:

- customs compliance
- transit
- market surveillance/ regulatory physical checks
- agrifood (SPS) checks and processes
- endangered species

Government “actions to take” for traders:

- get a GB EORI number
- apply for an EU EORI
- get a customs intermediadry

On last point, industry say there are simply not enough.

The new “core” processes for import/ export with EU, from January and then July...

Replaces simply driving it through the Chunnel/ on and off a ferry:

Will need GB EORI, Chief badge, commodity code, value at a minimum.

Quite important this particularly for retailers serving tourists - they’ve ended the VAT retail export scheme - for everybody - so no more of those refunds for overseas tourists... presumably because offering them to EU visitors would have overwhelmed the system... And the Kent Access Permit plans are listed too - required by all outbound HGV drivers for access to key roads such as M20, at risk of £300 on spot fine. Will have to register with the system formerly known as “Smart Freight” and now as “Check an HGV is Ready to Cross the Border”

As I said before, the M20 is reduced in capacity heading towards London as it is prepared to become a lorry park in January. Operation Brock will become the new normal, until some kind of common sense returns to this once green and pleasant land, and we either accept EU riules on the SM and CU or we will all get poorer and hungrier day by day, month by month.

And the reality is, already the majority don't want Brexit, and in time, once the cost of economic Brexit, there will be an overwhelming call to rejoin. It will take time, maybe a generation, but all of this will be for nothing.

138 pages of red tape. Or red, white and blue tape as we can call it. Call it another Brexit bonus and put that on the side of a bus. And all will cost, billions in extra staff, in delays and in warehousing. All for nothing, nothing positive will come out of this.

And major Japanese companies are expecting the UK to pay for delays and costs caused by Brexit. Upsetting Japan isn't going to be the brightest thing at the moment.

And finally, an un-named senior advisor who has worked on the Brexit negotiations has said that in 15 years the UK and EU will be closely aligned in regards to trade, rules and regulations, as geography is relentless.