Commenting on the publication of the first tranche of UK Government technical notices aimed at giving businesses and consumers advice on the implications of a ‘no deal’ exit from the European Union, Harri Lloyd-Davies, President of the South Wales Chamber of Commerce said:

“The technical notices published by the UK Government today are a good start to helping Welsh businesses prepare for Brexit, but we still need more detailed information to be able to trade as smoothly as possible across borders if we end up with no UK-EU deal on 30 March next year.

“There are several issues that are particularly pertinent to businesses in Wales.

“Given well-publicised concerns surrounding the capacity and readiness of UK customs systems, what impact will there be at Welsh ports? Most exports from our sea-ports go to Ireland, but with nearly all of these technical notices featuring the same placeholder text on the Irish border we are still left asking questions over whether the sea and land border with the Republic of Ireland will be treated differently.

“The reiteration of the government’s broad commitment to guarantee resources for EU-funded projects approved prior to the UK’s departure from the EU is welcomed. We rely heavily on EU funds to deliver infrastructure, regeneration and employment in communities across Wales. While the government is doing the right thing by saying that it will stand behind these projects until their expected completion in 2020, we await further detail spelling out exactly how this guarantee will work in practice and how such projects could be funded in future.”