The British Retail Consortium (BRC) has released a statement urging the UK government to secure a positive new customs arrangement with the EU, after the presentation of the government’s policy paper detailing the Brexit process.
Yesterday, the British parliament voted to give Prime Minister Theresa May the power to trigger Article 50.
The document lays out the government’s plans after the UK leaves the EU, including exiting the single market and creating a ‘frictionless’ free trade agreement with the EU.
The government also wishes to be outside the customs union, so it can create its own trade deals.
Helen Dickinson, chief of the BRC, said: “There are reasons to be optimistic about trade and retail in a post-Brexit world. It’s encouraging that the government recognises that the UK has a role to play as a champion of free and open trade.
"However, securing a positive new customs arrangement with the EU, which enables mutually beneficial opportunities for trade with the EU and the rest of the world, will be crucial to ensuring British shoppers aren’t hit with the costs of unwanted import tariffs."
She said that this goal will require a tight partnership between the retail industry and Brexit negotiators.
"In the short-term, the number one priority needs to be ensuring that Britain’s exit from the EU is orderly, allowing all goods traded between the EU and the UK to be in free circulation."
The policy paper emphasised that the UK government wants to engineer ‘a smooth, mutually beneficial exit’, and stated that the government will still trigger Article 50 by the end of March.
© 2017 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Karen Henderson. Click subscribe to sign up for ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine.
