Brexit Opportunities Minister Jacob Rees-Mogg is expected to frame the move as the use of the UK’s new independent powers to control trade borders after leaving the EU and the single market. It is also expected to say it is a response to supply chain fears in a trading environment already hit by the war in Ukraine and the cost of living crisis. The delays could delay the full implementation of Brexit controls by 2023, sources said, with the removal of physical controls and a possible easing of the product, animal, food and feed (IPAFFS) import requirement. Earlier this month, a shutdown of a key post-Brexit IT system, the Freight Forwarding Service (GVMS), combined with the disruption of P&O ferries, led to long delays in freight traffic trying to cross the English Channel. . Industry sources said that small suppliers in the EU were not prepared for physical border controls or could not obtain the veterinary certificates required for fresh foods, from artisanal cheese to olive oil and dried meats from countries such as Spain and Italy. “EU suppliers will be hit in exactly the same way as British fish and food suppliers last year. “The difference here is that the UK has no way of helping EU suppliers,” said a spokesman for the industry. Another said: “This is good news for us. “Obviously they had problems with GVMS in general and they do not want the egg on their faces.” Health and phytosanitary controls (SPS) have been in place in all EU countries bordering the United Kingdom, including France, Belgium and Ireland, since the Brexit withdrawal agreement came into force on 1 January 2021. The cliff approach has left exporters of fish and other fresh food in chaos with a lack of customs and veterinary staff to certify that the products complied with EU standards. However, in the UK post-Brexit controls on fresh food are not applied to imports, as they were postponed to 2020 and in two cases to 2021. Under the current border plan, physical checks on meat were to begin on 1 July and on dairy on 1 September, with all other foodstuffs, including fish and compound foods, subject to controls from 1 November.
