BRUSSELS: Brussels this month between UK and EU officials to see if an “innovative and untested approach” a new customs partnership – can be introduced to avoid a hard Irish border post Brexit.
The customs partnership appears to be s preferred option, described by Whitehall insiders as “intellectually perfect,” but it could take years to realise as it would involve some form of tracking technology.
Last August, the UK published its so-called future partnership paper, which set out two main options for resolving the border issue.
The customs partnership will effectively mean that the UK becomes the EU’s external border guard.
Under the plan, the UK would implement a regime for imports that would align precisely with the EU’s external customs border for those goods that will be consumed within the EU market.
The UK would apply the same tariffs as the EU and pass the money onto Brussels.
The partnership paper explained: “By mirroring the EU’s customs approach at its external border, we could ensure that all goods entering the EU via the UK have paid the correct EU duties. This would remove the need for the UK and the EU to introduce customs processes between us, so that goods moving between the UK and the EU would be treated as they are now for customs purposes.”
