Theresa May’s customs plan won’t be ready until the next general election with the delay expected to be up to 18 months
Government insiders insisted that the delay is not likely to affect as much as 96% of all businesses
THERESA May’s new customs plan suffered a fresh set back last night when it emerged it won’t be fully ready until the next general election.
Officials have warned that some businesses won’t have purchased the technology they will need in time for the Future Customs Arrangement’s inauguration on January 1, 2021.
Instead, No10 has been warned to expect a further delay of between a year and 18 months, pushing its full benefits back until the summer of 2022.
The revelation is fresh blow to the PM’s new soft Brexit blueprint.
But government insiders insisted last night that the delay is not likely to affect as much as 96% of all businesses.
Under the FCA plan, importers are charged either the EU’s tariff or Britain’s when their goods arrive, depending on where they end up.
The government then hand over the cash to Brussels, to keep the borders free flowing and without the need to impose hard checks.
But 4% of all trade that arrives in the UK has an unknown destination, so must be tracked by the new technology.
Businesses will only fork out for the gadgets once the FCA is confirmed with the signing of a new EU-UK trade deal, not expected until late 2020.
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