Industry welcomes new government guidance for hauliers on post-Brexit border plan

The government has published details about how the arrangements for the UK’s borders with the EU will work from January and actions that hauliers need to take.

It said the guidance followed “extensive engagement” with stakeholders, as well as a £705m package of investment for border infrastructure, jobs and technology.

The GB-EU border operating model maps out intended locations of inland border infrastructure, which will offer additional capacity for freight checks; announces that passports will be required for entry into the UK from October 2021 and confirms that the Kent Access Permit will be mandatory for HGVs using the short straight channel crossings.

RHA chief executive Richard Burnett said: “It’s vital that hauliers and traders do everything they can now to prepare for our new trading relationship with the EU.

Firms moving goods across borders will have to undertake customs processes whether there’s a deal or no deal.

The message is clear – if the paperwork’s not right, the goods won’t cross.”

Logistics UK said the clarity was welcomed and that with less than 90 days to go, businesses must make the most of the guidance to speed up their preparations: “Logistics organisations need their customers to prepare if they are to maintain a smooth flow of goods to and from the EU,” said Elizabeth de Jong, Logistics UK policy director.

“We now want to see the same clarity and detailed information for the movement of goods between Great Britain and Northern Ireland, so that businesses can plan and logistics operators avoid delays.”