The UK international haulage market is an extremely important industry. In 2016, three million vehicles, from small vans to articulated trucks, made the journey from Great Britain to mainland Europe.
The UK logistics industry is worth £96 billion per year to the economy employing 2.3 million people in over 188,000 companies.
Many fear that a no-deal Brexit is going to cause major disruption to the sector. With the date for the UK set to leave the EU only five months away, industry insiders are becoming more and more concerned with how the Brexit negotiations are going. How much additional administration will be needed for each export and import entering or leaving the UK? Studies have shown that just doubling the inspection time on each lorry at Dover from two to four minutes would result in traffic jams of over 29 miles. Each customs entry takes on average 30 minutes to process and costs £35, so that means more time required for administration and billions in extra costs per year.
The UK is the EU’s largest export market for goods. 18% of EU goods come to the UK, with 40% of British goods going to the EU. People are worried that Brexit may make trade more difficult, causing a reduction in imports and exports and therefore issues within haulage industry.
Another stumbling block will be the new permit requirement as competition will be fierce. Some 38,000 British trucks routinely drive in the EU and, if no deal is reached, they will only be able to carry on driving on European roads with a permit. Britain’s EU membership meant they have never needed one before.
Let’s hope Theresa May and her government can come up with a plan to keep the trucks moving without too much inconvenience to everyone, a difficult task indeed.