The exporters of the Region welcome the new extension of the ‘Brexit’ phytosanitary measures, decided by the Russian invasion and the energy crisis
In the context of the war in Ukraine and the energy crisis, and to avoid unexpected costs to British companies and consumers, the Government of the United Kingdom has announced the postponement, until the end of 2023, of the new sanitary and phytosanitary controls on Community imports that were going to begin in July, according to reports from the national fruit and vegetable association (Fepex). This new extension benefits producers and exporters, since it means that the merchandise will not have to be accompanied, for the time being, by a phytosanitary certificate nor will it be subject to additional physical or identity controls at border control points.
The president of the producers and exporters of stone fruit and table grapes (Apoexpa), Joaquín Gomez, has indicated that with this extension the sector is freed until the end of 2023 “from the bureaucratic burden” that these controls represent at customs. “The British don’t want to slow down shipments either.” These controls would have meant a slowdown in refrigerated truck traffic at customs. The regional sector is one of the main fruit and vegetable exporters, with a weekly transit of thousands of trucks.
According to the phases established by the British Government, after ‘Brexit’, to control goods imported from the EU, on July 1 fresh fruit and vegetables should be accompanied by a phytosanitary certificate and physical and identity at border points. However, after the announcement, these two requirements are postponed until at least the end of 2023, Fepex highlights in a statement.
The employer clarifies that the controls that have been introduced so far as a result of ‘Brexit’ remain in force. In this sense, he explains, for the bulk of fresh fruit and vegetables, the customs declaration (DUA) and the certificate of conformity with marketing standards must continue to be presented, both requirements that are mandatory since January 2021. On the other hand , there are vegetables considered high priority such as potatoes (both for sowing and for consumption) and plants that already have more demanding requirements in force, and these products do have to be accompanied by phytosanitary certificates and are also subject to physical controls at authorized destination points.
“The announcement of the new postponement of phytosanitary controls on imports is positively valued by the exporting producer sector of fresh fruit and vegetables grouped in Fepex, and will contribute to reducing the administrative burden, which has already increased since January 1 of this year, when the United Kingdom definitively left the EU”, he highlights.
war in ukraine
“The British Government argues that with this postponement it wants to avoid the costs derived from these controls for British companies and consumers, given the situation of the military conflict in Ukraine and the increase in energy prices. They consider that it would be a mistake to impose new administrative burdens, and run the risk of collapsing ports and supply chains at this time, according to the English government website and information from the Economic and Commercial Office of the Spanish Embassy in London and of the Embassy of the United Kingdom in Madrid”, explains the Fepex statement. They estimate that postponing these checks will save British businesses up to £1bn. In the official statement, it is stated that the controls that were going to be implemented in July would replicate the control model used by the EU in its imports from third countries, which is too complex and expensive.
In turn, the British Government has announced that it is accelerating a program for the digitization of Great Britain’s borders, whose operating model could be published in the autumn and that would establish a new regime of import border controls, with 2023 as a possible date of introduction to the control regime.
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