The United Kingdom is facing a serious border disruption in its main port with mainland Europe, as the deadline for the country’s complete withdrawal from the European Union’s regulatory bodies at the end of this year edges closer.
Of the many territorial quagmires that have emerged from the UK withdrawal from the European Union, a border in Kent is not one that is typically referenced.
Yet that is exactly what was announced by the British government on Wednesday, which intends to introduce a de facto internal border in the county, under the threat of fines, if drivers are found with the new Kent access permit (KAP), allowing them to continue trading in mainland Europe after the Brexit transition period ends.
Trucking Lanes at Dover
Simon Evans, a Youtuber and truck driver for one of the major UK shopping chains, cited one of the current documents required to pass the Dover border currently.
He explained that the new system places the entire responsibility for the paperwork, including the risk of being the sole recipient of the fine, on the driver.
He warned that a hold-up due to paperwork would disproportionately fall on the driver, rather than the haulier and, while the cost of the KAP has not yet been made public, fines could quickly accumulate for drivers.
Alpha Logistik
He added that truck driver wages have remained largely stagnant for many years. With a decimated trade union culture and increasing regulatory encroachment from the European Union, many truckers abandoned the industry – a trend which could prove disastrous for the UK economy.
When asked about the government’s so-called ‘SMART’ technology, intended to track border movements, he asked why the system wasn’t ready “when they knew exactly what the leaving date was anyway?”
He said that “part of it was just blatant incompetence and arrogance and the rest of it is a punishment”.
Evans predicted that the new policy would affect the price of UK exports and have a serious “knock-on effect as haulier companies will have to hike up their prices” and leave trucks lying around carrying perishables, causing mass wastage.
When the policy was first announced on Wednesday, the UK Minister for the Cabinet Office, Michael Gove, said that truck drivers heading to the Port of Dover or the Eurotunnel in Folkestone will require the KAP to enter the county beginning 1 January.
During his address to the Commons on Wednesday, the government minister admitted that just 24% of businesses say they are “fully ready” for the new systems to be put in place post-Brexit.
Gove explained that “only 50% to 70% of large businesses and just 20% to 40% of small and medium-size enterprises” are ready to apply new EU requirements.
Transporters who are discovered driving to border regions without a KAP could be slapped with a £300 fine by the Vehicle Standards Agency or law enforcement.
According to the government, the system will be enforced by police and automatic number plate recognition (ANPR) cameras.
A KAP has been under consideration by Whitehall as a means of preventing traffic chaos in the county for some time, but the announcement by the government on Wednesday confirming that the plan will become operational January 2021.
It follows an earlier September leaked document from Westminster, revealing that UK borders could experience “widespread disruption”, with traffic jams of 7,000 lorries and waiting times of up to two days to cross the border.
The “reasonable worst-case scenario” report, put together by the Border and Protocol Delivery Group, predicted that passengers waiting for Eurostar trains could find themselves waiting 2 hours before boarding.
A not-so-SMART system?
Trucks leaving depots in other parts of the country will have to receive a green or amber result from the online so-called ‘SMART’ Freight system to be valid for 24 hours, which will only last a single trip.
Implementation of the SMART freight technology, designed to regulate the movement of traffic into Kent and prevent congestion, is being developed by the Exit Operations committee, chaired by Gove, and was privy to the leaked report highlighting that preparations for post-Brexit border operations have dominated 26 government departments and that businesses across the country are unprepared for the shift.
Lorry Queue at Dover
While Gove has cited areas in Kent where investment has been made to prepare for the potential disruption of haulage and freight, associations have warned that SMART will not be ready for the 1 January deadline.
She added that Logistics UK had offered “maximum support” to the government to help develop a system which will be “vital to the continued movement of trade to and from the EU” and expressed dismay over the revelation last Wednesday that the regime will not be fully ready and tested until April 2021.
Logistics UK said that government officials told businesses that a ‘beta’ version of the system would be available in December.
Docking Lane, Dover
Concern that the blockages are the result of government inadequacy rather than a lack of preparation by business was echoed by the British International Freight Association (BIFA).
He added that Westminster had adopted a “Carwyn James” approach to business and trade policy.
The BIFA director said the organisation’s members would be “more than able” to implement what was necessary if the government provided sufficient information, “the resources they require and systems that actually work”.
Lorry Park
A Vision of the Future
An emergency Brexit measure – Operation Stack – was activated, permitting lorries to line up to enter the port of Dover creating miles-long queues and long wait times for drivers to expand terrorist security checks, leading some to suggest that this would become commonplace following the full withdrawal of the UK from European Union regulatory bodies.
Kent is not the only area in the UK facing potential border post-Brexit troubles. In an admitted act of breaching international law, the administration of UK PM Boris Johnson is seeking to take further control over Northern Ireland and break the terms of the Withdrawal Agreement, which it left the EU under in January 2020.
As with Ireland, border disruption is dependent on the British government’s ability to secure a trade deal with the European Union, as the UK is set to leave the bloc’s Single Market and Customs Union at the end of the year.
Sourse: sputniknews.com
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