While Joe Biden seemingly closes the door on any trade-deal for the time being, there is hope that EU trade negotiations are making some progress, but time is fast running out.

The UK has been prioritising a US trade deal, which looked promising with the administration of Donald Trump, a fierce opponent of the European Union, but president-elect Biden has said that his priorities will be to improve investment in US manufacturing and the protection of American workers.

“I’m not going to enter any new trade agreement with anybody until we have made major investments here at home and in our workers and in education,” he said.

In what could be a critical development yesterday (Wednesday) Boris Johnson has lowered his Brexit demands on the critical fishing-rights issue, Michel Barnier told the bloc’s capitals ahead of what he said would be a crucial 48 hours.

In briefings to EU ambassadors and MEPs in Brussels, the bloc’s chief negotiator said Downing Street had revised its demand, but it is unclear whether the divide could be bridged in the time remaining.

Common ground on the fishing issue is slowly being found, with the UK offering greater flexibility in recent days over a mechanism to ensure neither side can gain a competitive advantage by deregulating over time, but issues remain around domestic enforcement and dispute resolution.

Meanwhile, the government has denied claims it is seeking to delay implementation of the Northern Ireland protocol in the withdrawal agreement, including the new customs checks on goods entering from Britain, due to the difficulty in preparing for the end of the transition period.

HMRC officials told MPs they “did not recognise” reports overnight about a deal to phase in controls. They did say there would be “light-touch” operation and some “grace” shown to businesses who were not ready.

It has emerged in a Commons committee hearing that British businesses will have to complete 11m customs declarations forms a year to sell their goods in Northern Ireland for the first time.

Customs declarations must be made as part of the Northern Ireland protocol from 1st January but a key software system (the goods vehicle movement service) will not go into “end to end” testing with businesses until 14th December.

We have developed a suite of bespoke and automated solutions to protect our shippers EU trade from the 1st January 2021, including our innovative CuDoS platform, which automates and digitises customs submissions for the swiftest and most accurate declarations. 

For further information contact our post-Brexit Task Team and speak with Andrew White or Jade Barrow.

On 13th July 2020, the UK Government released the Border Operating Model (BOM), detailing how the UK will manage customs and border control obligations post-Brexit. On 8th October 2020, the UK Government released a comprehensive BOM update that will be effective from 1st January 2021. 

All businesses moving goods between the EU and Great Britain (and the EU to Northern Ireland via Great Britain) need to engage with the Border Operating Model guidance to understand the impact to their supply chain and Brexit preparations. 

Regardless of the trade-deal negotiations, UK businesses will need to submit import and export declarations for their trade with the EU. The Border Operating Model sets out these changes and the new regulations that businesses must comply with after the end of the transition period.

The staged approach to importing into the UK (three stages of 1st January, 1st April and 1st July 2020) introduced in the Border Operating Model guidance on the 13th July 2020 has been further clarified and it is now clear that the ‘light-touch’ (EIDR) process can only be operated by traders (or their agent) if approved for ‘simplified procedures’ by HMRC. 

There are some simplifications to ‘normal’ import and export procedures such as postponed import VAT accounting and the removal of the requirement for a Customs Comprehensive Guarantee (CCG). This means easier access to customs special procedures such as Inward Processing Relief (used for processing/manufacturing goods in the UK) and Customs Warehousing (used for longer term storage of goods or for call off/consignment stock). 

The updated BOM also contains detailed explanations on moving goods using the Common Transit Convention (Transit), Transit accompanying documents (TAD) and using the new Goods Vehicle Movement Service.

There are a variety of process maps covering the various types of movements and system requirements contained in the BOM, though some are very detailed and may be difficult to interpret.

Our Brexit task force team has prepared its own process maps, which are easier to interpret, to illustrate Brexit customs processes and responsibilities for EU/UK imports and exports.

The six Metro process maps cover four import and two export methods, incorporating participants in the new processes and the point of supply chain intervention.

Metro have  been preparing for the imminent situation for the last two years and we now have a dedicated team of 28 colleagues that are working full time and relentlessly to ensure as seamless as possible transition is achieved for our customers. We will ensure that you keep on trading successfully with the European Union from 1st January 2021. This has taken a huge amount of investment in time, money and sweat, blood and tears!

Please visit our Brexit transition micro website for further details and latest news https://www.metroshipping.co.uk/brexit-ready/. Alternatively please call Jade Barrow who will be pleased to answer any questions or guide you on legislation and our own dynamic solution.

The Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMTT) is urging the government to get a deal that avoids World Trade Organisation rules (WTO), or risk production losses of £55bn over the next five years.

As Brexit talks enter the final stretch, the SMMT made a last call for negotiators to keep the health of automotive at the heart of discussions and to get a deal in place by Christmas that avoids tariffs, or risk damaging one of Europe’s most valuable manufacturing industries.

The entire European sector, including the UK, has already lost €100 billion to the pandemic and has repeatedly called on EU and UK leaders to ensure the sector will not face further damage from the imposition of tariffs from 1st January 2021, which would deliver another €110 billion blow to manufacturers on both sides of the Channel.

For the UK industry alone, new figures reveal that production losses could cost as much as £55.4 billion over the next five years if the sector was forced to trade on WTO conditions long-term. 

Even with a so-called ‘bare-bones’ trade deal agreed, the cost to industry would be some £14.1 billion, reinforcing how, for the automotive sector, Brexit has always been an exercise in damage limitation. 

With scant time left for businesses to prepare for new trading terms, the sooner a deal is done and detail communicated, the less harmful it will be for the sector and its workers.

The SMMT are seeking a future trading relationship that works for automotive. Having already spent a billion pounds preparing for the unknown of Brexit and lost twenty-eight times that to Covid, they say the industry cannot be left counting the cost of tariffs, especially not by accident.

The automotive industry can deliver the jobs growth needed to help rebuild a devasted economy, but the government must create the environment for this success, which starts with a favourable Brexit deal and a bold strategy to help transform automotive production in the UK, attract new investment, upskill the workforce and build world-leading battery capability to future-proof manufacturing.

The government’s plan for a green industrial revolution is an immense challenge – for automotive and WTO tariffs would add an average £2,000 to the cost of British-built electric cars sold in the EU, making UK plants considerably less competitive and undermining Britain’s attractiveness as a destination for inward investment. 

Metro have been heavily involved in the automotive and construction equipment sectors for the last 40 years. We have partnered with some of the UK and Europe’s largest OEM manufacturers globally in this time and developed and created bespoke solutions delivering reliable and cost effective results. 

We continue to be very close to customers, suppliers and government bodies that are all influencing the ongoing situation. 

For the latest market intel and advice please call Tom Fernihough, our Automotive Director, who will assist with any questions. Hopefully the situation will be resolved and the Doomsday predictions will be avoided.

With just 35 (25 working) days until the end of the EU transition period both sides are trying to reach a trade deal, that will soften the blow of departure and avoid a shattering end that neither want.

Despite finance minister Rishi Sunak stating that “with a constructive attitude and goodwill on all sides we can get there”, his subsequent comment “we absolutely should not be stretching for a deal at any cost, that is not the right thing to do” prompted European Commission head Ursula von der Leyen said to say the EU was ready for the possibility of Britain leaving without a new trade accord.

Reuters report that an official involved in the negotiations said a deal was possible, but not likely before the weekend at the earliest. An EU diplomat said it was more likely to come next week.

The European Commission - where Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier is leading talks with Britain on behalf of the whole bloc - is due to update national envoys to Brussels on the latest in the trade talks at 08:00 GMT on Friday.

EU sources said Barnier himself may travel to London later on for more discussions with his British counterpart, David Frost, if there is a chance for a breakthrough.

Brexit minister Michael Gove is drawing the anger of the UK’s freight, logistics and supply chain sectors with his interpretation of post-Brexit trade with the EU, even as a test run of the new border checks resulted in five-mile lorry queues from Dover.

During Logistics UK’s Get Ready for Brexit webinar, Mr Gove provided little of substance and seemed to be using the occasion as an opportunity to rebuff suggestions that government had been seeking to direct blame for any chaos that may ensue.

Due to the impact of the pandemic, Mr Gove said many import controls due to take effect on the UK side of the border on 1st January would now be introduced in stages and he appeared to try to lay the blame for any chaos in January on EU members.

“What I cannot say is what the approach on the other side of the border will be. What I do know, though, is the approach the EU has taken throughout the process,” he said. “This is an approach of ‘rules are rules’ and when it comes to the checks, these will be applied.”

“I think we cannot expect a laissez faire approach to the new rules at Calais or at any of the other EU ports.”

“Another key concern is the prospect of disruption in Kent, and this has been a widespread concern since the vote to leave the EU. But this is also why we have invested in infrastructure and put in place mitigation measures if the worst comes to the worst.

However, Mr Gove’s announcements came less than 24 hours after a test run of post-Brexit border checks by French customs authorities resulted in queues of trucks stretching five miles along the M20.

Metro work closely with HMRC, BIFA and The Association of Freight Software Suppliers (AFSS) to follow the status of HMRC and EU post-Brexit systems and processes. 

We have developed a suite of bespoke, generic and automated solutions to protect your EU trade from the 1st January 2021. This includes our CuDoS (Customs Documentation Services) platform automating and digitalising customs submissions in the new European environment. 

For further information contact our post-Brexit Task Team and speak with Andrew White or Jade Barrow.