London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Saturday, Aug 02, 2025

Brexit import checks delayed for fourth time

Brexit import checks delayed for fourth time

The government has delayed introducing more checks on EU goods entering the UK over fears it will disrupt supply chains and add to rising inflation.

New import controls on EU food products had been due to begin in July.

The government said "it would be wrong to impose new administrative burdens and risk disruption at ports" at a time of higher costs due to the war in Ukraine and rising energy prices.

It is the fourth time it has delayed EU import checks since the UK left the EU.

Brexit opportunities minister Jacob Rees-Mogg said the government was reviewing how it would implement checks on EU goods and "the new controls regime will come into force at the end of 2023".

He claimed that the delay would save British businesses up to £1bn in annual costs.

Mr Rees-Mogg said it would have been "an act of self-harm" if the government had decided to go ahead with the import controls.

He said the checks would have brought "quite significant" price increases for people at a time when the government was "trying to reduce costs."

These would have included a "71% increase - maximum level - on the retail price" of small deliveries like cheese.

He said: "You would have been adding potentially £500 of costs on a shipment of fish fingers, that then falls through to the consumer."

Business groups welcomed the move.

"We are dealing with significant supply chain stress and inflationary costs this year and this would have made a bad situation much worse," said Shane Brennan, chief executive of the Cold Chain Federation.

The Federation of Small Businesses said: "Imposition of full import controls this summer would have meant yet another burden for small firms which are already wrestling with new trade rules and spiralling operating costs."

'White elephants'


However, ports, which have spent millions of pounds gearing up for the checks, said they had been "landed with the bill of the government Brexit border U-turn".

They have been building border control posts that would allow checks on imports of EU food and animals.

But those checks have not only been delayed, but may not be needed if a "light touch" regime is brought in, potentially meaning that the new infrastructure will be "useless", the British Ports Association said.

"This announcement is a major policy change, meaning the facilities will effectively become white elephants, wasting millions of pounds of public and private funding, not to mention the huge effort there has been to get things ready in time," the association's chief executive Richard Ballantyne said.

He said ports were looking for "clarification from policy makers if there will be any type of financial assistance or compensation for ports and also if operators can start to bulldozer the facilities and use the sites for other purposes".

The Major Ports Group, which represents major UK ports and freeports, said they had been "working incredibly hard and have invested over £100m of their own money" in new border posts which could be "highly bespoke white elephants".

Meanwhile, the National Farmers' Union (NFU) said the decision was "another blow to farm businesses that are already struggling with enormous inflationary costs and ongoing labour shortages".

"Our producers have to meet stringent controls to export their own products abroad, all while being left at a continued competitive disadvantage to our EU competitors, who are still enjoying an extended grace period which gives them access to the prized UK market relatively cost and burden free," NFU president Minette Batters said.

She added that checks on agricultural food imports were "absolutely critical to the nation's biosecurity, animal health and food safety".

The British Veterinary Association also criticised the move, saying it "flies in the face not only of common sense, but also of the government's commitment to preserving high levels of animal and human health in the UK".

James Russell, the association's senior vice president, said it had repeatedly warned that delaying veterinary checks further "could weaken vital lines of defence" against diseases.


This is more than just yet another delay on the post-Brexit system for imports.

It is, says the government, a significant change of policy that could mean wide-ranging laborious physical checks on food imports from the EU might never be introduced.

Such checks were originally thought to be the inevitable consequence of the distant harder Brexit deal struck by Boris Johnson.

What is certain is that such checks are in the long grass, and that will come as a huge relief to many in the logistics industry and in particular the supermarkets.

The government's plan is that a new digital trade border, applying to the whole world, will be in place at least in trial form by the end of 2023.

This will mean that only a tiny proportion of the physical checks on food imports due to have rolled out from this July will be needed.

For Mr Rees-Mogg, agreeing lower trade barriers than had been planned is good policy.

But it is an about-turn to lower barriers to provide an incentive for the EU to reduce its equivalent stringent checks on UK food exports.

For now, the supermarkets will be happy to avoid what could have been an acute source of further supply chain and inflationary pressure.

But some UK food exporters face the triple whammy of marathon length haulage queues in Kent, dozens of pages of red tape for sales in Europe, and no equivalent restrictions on competition from abroad for the UK market.

Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Germany Enters Fiscal Crisis as Cabinet Approves €174 Billion in New Debt
Trump Administration Finalizes Broad Tariff Increases on Global Trade Partners
J.K. Rowling Limits Public Engagements Citing Safety Fears
JD.com Launches €2.2 Billion Bid for German Electronics Retailer Ceconomy
Azerbaijan Proceeds with Plan to Legalise Casinos on Artificial Islands
Former Judge Charged After Drunk Driving Crash Kills Comedian in Brazil
Jeff Bezos hasn’t paid a dollar in taxes for decades. He makes billions and pays $0 in taxes, LEGALLY
China Increases Use of Exit Bans Amid Rising U.S. Tensions
IMF Upgrades Global Growth Forecast as Weaker Dollar Supports Outlook
Procter & Gamble to Raise U.S. Prices to Offset One‑Billion‑Dollar Tariff Cost
House Republicans Move to Defund OECD Over Global Tax Dispute
Botswana Seeks Controlling Stake in De Beers as Anglo American Prepares Exit
Trump Administration Proposes Repeal of Obama‑Era Endangerment Finding, Dismantling Regulatory Basis for CO₂ Emissions Limits
France Opens Criminal Investigation into X Over Algorithm Manipulation Allegations
A family has been arrested in the UK for displaying the British flag
Mel Gibson refuses to work with Robert De Niro, saying, "Keep that woke clown away from me."
Trump Steamrolls EU in Landmark Trade Win: US–EU Trade Deal Imposes 15% Tariff on European Imports
ChatGPT CEO Sam Altman says people share personal info with ChatGPT but don’t know chats can be used as court evidence in legal cases.
The British propaganda channel BBC News lies again.
Deputy attorney general's second day of meeting with Ghislaine Maxwell has concluded
Controversial March in Switzerland Features Men Dressed in Nazi Uniforms
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
Thai Civilian Death Toll Rises to 12 in Cambodian Cross-Border Attacks
TSUNAMI: Trump Just Crossed the Rubicon—And There’s No Turning Back
Over 120 Criminal Cases Dismissed in Boston Amid Public Defender Shortage
UN's Top Court Declares Environmental Protection a Legal Obligation Under International Law
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
The Podcaster Who Accidentally Revealed He Earns Over $10 Million a Year
Trump Announces $550 Billion Japanese Investment and New Trade Agreements with Indonesia and the Philippines
US Treasury Secretary Calls for Institutional Review of Federal Reserve Amid AI‑Driven Growth Expectations
UK Government Considers Dropping Demand for Apple Encryption Backdoor
Severe Flooding in South Korea Claims Lives Amid Ongoing Rescue Operations
Japanese Man Discovers Family Connection Through DNA Testing After Decades of Separation
Russia Signals Openness to Ukraine Peace Talks Amid Escalating Drone Warfare
Switzerland Implements Ban on Mammography Screening
Japanese Prime Minister Vows to Stay After Coalition Loses Upper House Majority
Pogacar Extends Dominance with Stage Fifteen Triumph at Tour de France
CEO Resigns Amid Controversy Over Relationship with HR Executive
Man Dies After Being Pulled Into MRI Machine Due to Metal Chain in New York Clinic
NVIDIA Achieves $4 Trillion Valuation Amid AI Demand
US Revokes Visas of Brazilian Corrupted Judges Amid Fake Bolsonaro Investigation
U.S. Congress Approves Rescissions Act Cutting Federal Funding for NPR and PBS
North Korea Restricts Foreign Tourist Access to New Seaside Resort
Brazil's Supreme Court Imposes Radical Restrictions on Former President Bolsonaro
Centrist Criticism of von der Leyen Resurfaces as she Survives EU Confidence Vote
Judge Criticizes DOJ Over Secrecy in Dropping Charges Against Gang Leader
Apple Closes $16.5 Billion Tax Dispute With Ireland
Von der Leyen Faces Setback Over €2 Trillion EU Budget Proposal
UK and Germany Collaborate on Global Military Equipment Sales
Trump Plans Over 10% Tariffs on African and Caribbean Nations
×