Business leaders have told Boris Johnson his Brexit plan risks causing severe damage to the Northern Ireland economy and has ramped up the chance of a no-deal departure.
In an angry response to the prime minister’s plan to take Britain, including Northern Ireland, out of the customs union, representatives of companies in the province and across the UK said it put jobs and growth at risk. They also said it was likely to be rejected by Brussels, raising the chances of a no-deal Brexit that would harm firms across the country.
Aodhán Connolly, the director of the Northern Ireland Retail Consortium, said Johnson had not listened to businesses, that his plan was “unworkable and unpalatable” and would make Northern Irish goods less competitive.
“The measures are predicated on intrusive surveillance, which will put a burden on business and be disruptive for border communities,” he added.
Ian Wright, the chief executive of the UK Food and Drink Federation, said the plans would lead to added costs for companies. He said: “It would also be bad for consumers as it would become more expensive to move goods into Northern Ireland.”
Northern Ireland’s economy is highly connected with the Republic under the EU customs union regime, with a trade in goods relationship worth about £5.2bn. About a third of goods and services exports are sold to the Republic, while about a quarter of its imports come from the Republic.
Under Johnson’s plan, the movement of goods would require customs checks, though he says they could be limited by alternative arrangements such as electronic paperwork and a “very small number” of physical inspections at traders’ premises.
Businesses, however, said the erection of border infrastructure and new customs checks could damage the economy, hampering job creation, economic growth and exports.
Ann McGregor, the chief executive of Northern Ireland Chamber of Commerce and Industry, said: “It is imperative that it does not happen even for a time limited period. Businesses are telling us that the potential increased costs will seriously damage business supply lines and indeed business survival.”
However, Diageo, the drinks group which makes Guinness and Baileys, moves ingredients and bottles ready for sale across the Irish border multiple times a day. It suggested any increase in border checks would necessarily be very burdensome.
Its beer goes from the St James’s Gate brewery in Dublin to a packaging operation in Belfast, while cream for Baileys comes from the Republic into Northern Ireland to be turned into the finished product, before being sent back for consolidation and export.
Diageo had previously estimated a hard border could cost it £1.3m, based on an estimate of an hour’s delay for each of the 18,000 beer trucks that traverse the border each day.
It now believes that the burden would be much lower than that thanks to the company’s status as a “trusted trader”, with any impediment likely to be administrative rather than involving lengthy physical delays.
John Glen, economist at the Chartered Institute of Procurement & Supply, said about 40% of businesses were not ready for additional customs checks and that filling in forms away from the border could still result in disruption.
“What if you turn up without the right documents? What happens if a lorry crosses the border without clearance? We’re a long way off being ready,” he said.
