Boris Johnson ramps up no-deal Brexit plans with £300m freight capacity pledge
Boris Johnson has pledged to spend up to £300m on extra freight capacity in order to keep vital goods moving in the event of a no-deal Brexit.
The disruption to imports and exports across the Channel is one of the most prominent risks facing Britain in the event of the UK leaving the European Union without an agreement on 31 October.
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The news comes as it was revealed earlier today that the department of health and social care have extended a deadline to ensure the delivery of medical supplies in the event of no deal by seven weeks.
The government had originally set a deadline of 1 September for an express freight service to be arranged, however that has now been put back to 24 October, just a week before Britain is due to leave the Bloc.
It means more time for the procurement process, but leaves limited time to solve problems with overruns or contracts for the service, which is designed to guarantee the continued supply of products such as blood, medicine and transplant organs to medical centres and patients in need.
“Disgruntled bidders, internal approvals or just bad luck could block DHSC from entering into the contracts for weeks if not months,” former senior government adviser, Andrew Dean, told the BBC.
Ministers will invite firms to make bids to provide freight capacity from today in order to reduce the complications of a no-deal Brexit.
“It shows the EU that we’re serious about no deal, that we’re straining every sinew to be ready,” one minister told The Times. “The capacity is there in the unlikely event that we need it.”
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It is the first in a line of announcements expected in the coming weeks to show the EU that the UK will be prepared to leave without a deal this time around.
During a cabinet meeting yesterday, Johnson and newly-appointed chancellor Sajid Javid told ministers to step up preparations, according to a source, who told The Times that “the purse strings were open”.