I believe Chris Grayling claimed on Question Time this week that the government is proposing not to impose any border checks at Dover post Brexit. This is the amazing secret plan. We are to regain control of our borders in order to throw them open to all comers. As Infacts points out HERE it is a ridiculous proposition. Firstly, the EU will never accept it and secondly the WTO will demand the same for every other country.
He seems to be suggesting something along the lines of the USA / Canada border which is apparently very high tech but far from open. It can still take up to 28 minutes to get through.
I used to think he was a fantasist but now I see he is just a nutter.
The government has been consulting with industry groups especially freight forwarders and handlers involved with traffic across the Channel according to Faisal Islam at Sky News (HERE). I suppose this should not come as a surprise. And yet somehow it does. It's a surprise they are only just starting to gather data about what is actually going backwards and forwards across the Channel. One would have thought they were doing this already. Secondly, it's a surprise the discussions are covered by non-disclosure agreements (HERE) so the consultees cannot talk about it.
Apparently, senior people from trade bodies go to meetings but are unable to tell others what they were asked or what they said. Amazing.
But I assume as a result of this consultation it has become clear we can do nothing at Dover or the channel tunnel because it is just impossible. Islam says it takes 24 minutes to turn around a Eurotunnel freight train full of imports from Europe at the terminal near Folkestone, before it leaves full of lorries heading for the Continent - that's a train every ten minutes, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week - a quarter of all our trade with Europe, or £100bn's worth. Border checks would make the whole thing uneconomic.
Islam thinks the lack of any preparatory work at Dover means the government is simply going to dare the EU to apply to us the rules that we have been applying to third countries for years, after we become a third country. I am sure the EU will have none of it.
I look forward to seeing Davis' face when it all goes disastrously wrong.
