Brexit round-up – 25/09/20
25th September, 2020
Welcome to this, our latest Brexit round-up. Each week we provide a succinct round-up of the latest news surrounding the Brexit process, so you can keep abreast of the issues which are likely to affect your organisation.
Kent Access Permit system announced
Following a letter from cabinet minister Michael Gove to the Government warning that queues 7,000-trucks-long could clog roads around the port of Dover and Channel Tunnel after the transition period, the Government has announced the Kent Access Permit system. Under the system, truck drivers will need a permit to enter Kent after the Brexit transition period ends. Drivers of lorries weighing more than 7.5 tonnes will need to apply for the permits online and show that they have all the paperwork they need to ferry goods to Europe. The system will be enforced by police and ANPR cameras. Labour’s Shadow Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, Rachel Reeves, said “It is incredible that ministers are only now admitting to their plans to arrest British truckers for entering Kent without new travel passports. With just over three months to go, how are businesses meant to prepare amid this Conservative carnival of incompetence?'”
For more information please click here.
Brits in EU face closure of UK bank accounts over lack of post-Brexit rules
A number of large British banks are set to stop serving UK citizens resident in the EU as the Government has not yet negotiated post-Brexit rules. As EU banking rules will no longer apply to the UK once the Brexit transition period ends it would become illegal for UK banks to provide services for British customers in the EU without applying for new banking licences. Lloyds Bank, Barclays, Barclaycard and Coutts are all reported to be taking such action. Lloyds Bank has written to 13,000 personal and business customers saying it will no longer be able to offer banking services once the Brexit transition period ends on 31 December. HSBC and Santander say they have no plans to close British expat accounts in the EU. UK trade body UK Finance said “Where possible, firms want to keep providing banking services to customers living in the EEA after the transition period. The impact on each customer will vary depending on the operating model of their bank or provider, the product or service being provided, and the legal and regulatory framework in the country in which they are resident.”
For more information please click here.
If you have any questions about any of the issues which are raised, or would like to discuss your own organisation’s options during the Brexit process, please do not hesitate to get in touch.
Please note that this briefing is designed to be informative, not advisory and represents our understanding of English law and practice as at the date indicated. We would always recommend that you should seek specific guidance on any particular legal issue.
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