Less than 20% of Northern Irish businesses are ready for leaving the EU’s trading rules in under 4 weeks

Less than 20% of businesses in Northern Ireland feel ready for the end of the Brexit transition period in less than four weeks’ time, according to a stark new survey, as Boris Johnson’s UK government comes under growing pressure to postpone the introduction of a host of new checks on trade across the Irish Sea.

Fewer than one in five businesses in Northern Ireland across a range of sectors including retail, food & drink, and manufacturing feel prepared for new Brexit arrangements to take effect on January 1, according to the findings of a mass survey by the Northern Ireland Business Brexit Working Group (NIBBWG), published on Saturday.

The 250-plus businesses that took part in the survey said that a lack of information from the UK government on how Northern Ireland’s trade with the rest of the UK would work from next year was the main reason they wouldn’t be ready on time. They also cited the impact of the coronavirus pandemic on their ability to prepare for Brexit.

The figures are the latest to paint an alarming picture of business readiness ahead of the January 1 cliff edge. In less than four weeks the Brexit transition period will end and the protocol for Northern Ireland will come into effect.

Under the terms of the protocol, Great Britain will break away from European Union trading rules, while Northern Ireland will continue to follow them in order to avoid a hard border with the Republic of Ireland. It will result in an array of new checks and procedures for trade across the Irish Sea from Great Britain to Northern Ireland. These include customs declarations, strict health & safety requirements for food and animal goods, and new product labels.

However, with just weeks to go until the New Year’s Eve cliff edge, businesses in Northern Ireland are still waiting for key details on how these major changes will work in practice. Industry leaders in the province last month urged the EU and UK to postpone the implementation of the protocol, warning that businesses won’t be ready on time.

A NIBBWG spokesperson on Saturday called on the UK government and EU to agree an implementation period for Northern Irish businesses, to “ensure that trade can continue without disruption in the short-term.”

Business leaders like those on the NIBBWG have for months warned Johnson’s government that major retailers and supermarkets would stop serving Northern Ireland if they didn’t get clarity over how Brexit would impact trade across the Irish Sea.

You can read the entire article here: Less than 20% of Northern Irish businesses are ready for leaving the EU’s trading rules in under 4 weeks

Source: BusinessInsider