Skip to content
Search

Latest Stories

UK Businesses Out of Time To Cope With No-Deal Brexit: Government Audit

UK businesses have run out of time to prepare for the consequences of Britain leaving the European Union in March without an exit deal, a government audit showed on Wednesday (24).

The findings by the National Audit Office, the government's spending watchdog, were published with London and Brussels at loggerheads in Brexit talks.


They threaten to deal a political blow to Prime minister Theresa May, who has made the phrase that "no deal is better than a bad deal" her mantra.

The audit said uncertainty over the course of the negotiations has delayed preparations for a no-deal scenario, with organised crime gangs potentially stepping in to smuggle goods across the new EU-UK frontier.

"Businesses do not have enough time to make the changes that will be needed if the UK leaves the EU without a 'deal'," it said.

Over the long term, "organised criminals and others are likely to be quick to exploit any perceived weaknesses or gaps in the enforcement regime," it added.

The audit estimated that between 145,000 and 250,000 traders will need to make customs declarations for the first time should Britain break away without coming to terms with the EU.

"Government papers from July 2018 stated that it was already too late to ensure that all traders were properly prepared for ‘no deal’," the report wrote.

The number of customs declarations as a whole will grow from 55 million to 260 million, putting existing government management systems under immense strain.

The audit found that 11 out of 12 government projects replacing or upgrading existing border systems to prepare for more rigorous customs checks were as of September at risk of not being delivered on time to "acceptable quality".

The Financial Times reported on Tuesday (23) that realising the potential chaos, the government was drawing up plans to charter ships to bring in food and medicine in case there was no deal.

The newspaper said a meeting of May's cabinet on Tuesday was told that a heavily used trade route between the British port of Dover and the French one in Calais would quickly become blocked if no customs arrangements were made.

Britain would then ferry in ‘critical supplies’ and possibly also car parts.

Robert Peston, the political editor of the private channel ITV, wrote on Facebook that transport minister Chris Grayling told ministers that freight coming into UK from Calais would be reduced by 85 per cent.

National Audit Office chief Amyas Morse said the government openly admits that trade between Europe's second-largest economy and the rest of the 27-nation bloc would be ‘sub-optimal’ in a no-deal scenario.

"It is not clear what sub-optimal means in practice, or how long this will last," Morse said.

The report suggested that "it may take some time" for trade to return to normal.

"Individuals and businesses will feel the impact of a sub-optimal border to varying degrees," it said.

Agence France-Presse

More For You

Shein-Reuters

Shein had aimed to go public in London in the first half of this year, subject to regulatory approvals in the UK and China. (Photo: Reuters)

Shein cuts valuation to £40 billion for London listing

SHEIN is preparing to lower its valuation to around £40 billion for a potential initial public offering (IPO) in London, according to three Reuters sources familiar with the matter.

This is nearly 25 per cent lower than the company's 2023 fundraising valuation as it faces increasing challenges.

Keep ReadingShow less
Northern-Superchargers-Getty

Ben Stokes and Matthew Short of Northern Superchargers walk out to bat during The Hundred match between Manchester Originals and Northern Superchargers on August 11, 2024 in Manchester, England. (Photo: Getty Images)

Sunrisers Hyderabad to acquire Northern Superchargers in £100 million deal

INDIAN Premier League franchise Sunrisers Hyderabad is set to become the first full owners of an English Hundred team after agreeing to buy Yorkshire’s Northern Superchargers for a reported £100 million.

The Sun Group will be the third IPL-linked investor in the eight-team Hundred competition, following Reliance Industries, which owns Mumbai Indians, and RPSG, which runs Lucknow Super Giants.

Keep ReadingShow less
BT-Getty

A view of the British Telecom (BT) headquarters in central London. (Photo: Getty Images)

BT to remove diversity targets from manager bonuses

BT will remove diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) targets from its manager bonus scheme, replacing them with a measure of overall employee engagement.

The change, set to take effect in April, follows consultation with major investors and has received “strong support,” according to the company, The Telegraph reported.

Keep ReadingShow less
India's central bank cuts interest rates for first time since 2020

The central bank announced a 25-basis-point cut in the benchmark repo rate to 6.25 per cent, the rate at which it lends to commercial banks.. (Photo credit: Reuters)

India's central bank cuts interest rates for first time since 2020

THE RESERVE BANK OF INDIA (RBI) reduced interest rates on Friday for the first time in nearly five years, citing concerns over economic growth despite inflation risks.

The central bank announced a 25-basis-point cut in the benchmark repo rate to 6.25 per cent, the rate at which it lends to commercial banks.

Keep ReadingShow less
Sri Lanka seeks to negotiate with Adani over renewable energy plants

Gautam Adani

Sri Lanka seeks to negotiate with Adani over renewable energy plants

SRI LANKA’S government started talks with India’s Adani Group to lower the cost of power from two wind power projects the group will build in the island nation’s northern province, the cabinet spokesman said last Tuesday (28).

Sri Lanka has been reviewing the group’s local projects after US authorities in November accused billionaire founder Gautam Adani and other executives of being part of a scheme to pay bribes to secure Indian power supply contracts. Adani has denied the allegations.

Keep ReadingShow less