Plans revealed in government yesterday showed that the M26 will be closed every night for six weeks in order to convert it into a lorry park in the instance of a no deal Brexit to allow for customs and checks delays to not stop regular traffic flow.
Both ministers and manufacturers are worried that in the case of a no deal Brexit there will be long queues for freight vehicles. Highways England confirmed yesterday that they had been asked by the Department for Transport to look at how the M26 in Kent could be modified to allow for holdups at Dover.
Operation Brock
Something similar is already in place on the M20 to allow lorries to park on a 13 mile stretch between Junction 9 at Maidstone and Junction 8 at Ashford. The northbound carriageway remains open, but in contraflow, while the southbound is shut to allow for lorries to pass through.
Increased border checks mean that an extra two minutes added onto a check could cause delays up to 17 miles, Dover port officials have said. The current temporary solution on the M20 is not a viable long-term solution according to local MPs and council executives.
A report released under the Freedom of Information Act said “Customs checks on imports from outside the common market can take between five minutes to 45 minutes per vehicle
Port officials have warned that increasing the average time it takes to clear customs by as little as two minutes could lead to 17-mile traffic jams.”
The plans for the M26
Currently, the M26 has been closed every night for the last week to perform site surveys to understand the work needed to be done. Currently, this is the biggest practical implication that Brexit has had on the UK, so far it has mainly been legislation changes.
A spokesman for Highways England said: “The M26 will be closed in both directions overnight from October 15th to 19th between 10 pm and 5.30 am.
It will also be closed overnight from November 19th to 21st December between 10 pm and 5 am (on Friday night timings are 11 pm to 6 am).
This work is being undertaken by Highways England as part of the Kent Corridor Coordination Group programme of works.
There will be diversion routes for all vehicles and appropriate signage will be in place via M25/M20.”
Gates will be installed in the central reservation to allow for traffic to pass onto the other side of the road and then the northbound carriageway would act as a contraflow to keep traffic moving, while the southbound acts as a car park, holding up to 2000 lorries in case of emergencies.
Highways England also said: “As part of wider resilience planning, Highways England has been asked by the Department for Transport to develop plans to utilise the M26 to hold heavy goods vehicles, should further capacity be required in the future.
“We will be undertaking site surveys on the M26 during October leading to the installation of two gates in the central reservation to support the safe management of freight in the future if needed.”
Objections from MP’s
Tom Tugendhat, MP for Tonbridge and Malling, felt as though his constituency was kept in the dark over the works. Speaking to the government, Mr Tugendhat said “It’s come to a pretty pass when a member finds out that works have begun on a motorway to turn that motorway into a parking lot without consultation either with the local community or indeed with surrounding members.
The M26 works started last night. I wrote to [Transport Minister, Chris Grayling] in April asking whether or not this would happen. I was assured that works were not planned and only yesterday was it confirmed to me that Highways England had said that is exactly what was planned, despite having told me the reverse only a week earlier.”
Chris Grayling responded to the comments reassuring Mr Tugendhat that he did not plan for any of the contingency measures to be needed as he was confident “we will reach a sensible agreement [on Brexit].” Mr Tugendhat felt as though there had been no warning and local residents felt as though it would send lots of traffic through small single lane tracks in their villages, causing more disruption than necessary. It was also revealed that planning permission was granted without prior consultation of local residents.
Around four million lorries cross the Channel every year, and so any delay in crossing would cause insurmountable hold-ups and slow down delivery dates of groceries, meaning food won’t be as fresh, medications could take longer to deliver and there will be delays in all sectors.
Do you think these plans are the best way forward? Would you be comfortable using a motorway in contraflow? Let us know below
Project Fear
Terry don’t be daft they are the one’s that caused this c**p
What will be will be? Not so long ago we use to make things in the UK and consume them in the UK. We were self-contained and self-sustaining. That’s what we need to go back too. It is obvious to me that the EU wants the UK to fail, and they will do their hardest to see that happen. The only way to protect ourselves is to become self-sustaining. Grow our own food and eat our own food. Make our own drugs and use them.
So the above is the worst case scenario and will take some years to get too. Further, I will expect a recession to occur whatever happens in the UK. The 2nd option is the no deal scenario is that we negotiate trade deals with others quickly and work under WTO rules. Lots of companies will flee the UK but that will be good as new companies will grow to fill the space and trade just in the UK. Lots of opportunities and jobs will be made. We will then rocket to the top of the counties that are doing well. It will be a baptism of fire but we will be better off after all is said and done.
We have been in a depression since 2008, and good secure jobs. Those jobs we class as career jobs with good pay have all but dispersed. I think they could all come back once we are out of the EU and have to make the best of what we have.
The other two scenarios (+1) if we get a deal we become the dog under the table begging for scraps, subject to every whim of the EU if we are locked into a Customs Union that will not allow us to go and make our own deals with a bloody great big wall erected between South and Northen Ireland. This is the soft-Brexit.
A medium Brexit is May’s common rulebook that will initially look like the first soft-Brexit, but as time goes by we have the option to make our own rules and trade outside of the EU. This is the best and easiest way forward for the UK.
The final +1 scenario, that the MP’s want is a fantasy, as EU will never agree to the UK trading in the EU and not having some form of rules and agreements that can be altered and manipulated in the future.
Summing up
Hard Brexit – with no deal will see the UK suffer badly initially but after an extended period (say 10yrs) we could be the top performers.
Soft Brexit – we are indebted to the EU as slaves to every directive they hand down without any say, and will always be at the bottom of the table.
Medium Brexit – Is Mays common rulebook which is a compromise, being soft at first but later (say 20years) taking the UK to be a top performer.
MP’s fantasy Brexit – Will never happen, but if it did we will get to our end goal of being a top performer within 2 to 5 years.
The EU has an incentive to see the UK fail, to prevent other member states doing the something. The EU will use every dirty trick to see this outcome to ensure the EU is kept alive. The EU is not our friends and if we get a Hard Brexit the EU will suffer a lot more than the UK and the EU will take some 20+ years to recover.
My final point don’t be afraid of all the shit being proposed as per this article, it could happen if the EU decides to screw us over, but the light at the end of the tunnel will be x1000 times bright when we start to recover.
Regards
A man that thinks we should have our sovereignty back
How far back exactly do you consider to be “not so long ago”? The East India Company was trading goods all over the world in the 17th century. And as for your revelation that “We have been in a depression since 2008”, that’s simply not true, is it? There have been a few blips, and certainly no boom, but growth has generally been positive year on year. https://tradingeconomics.com/united-kingdom/gdp-growth
But hey, why let facts get in the way of opinion..?
When you have interest rates at Zero % for almost 10 years you know the economy is bad. Did you know the government changed how they started measuring performance after the banks screwed up? What you are doing is measuring apple and oranges and thinking they are the same. WE HAVE BEEN in a depression ever-since 2008… Job numbers have been fudged, prosperity indexes are measured in a completely different way. Most jobs are Zero hour contracts and pensions are a forgotten memory.
I agree, my text is not based on any real knowledge as this is not my area expertise, but I can see what has happened and happening. You could well be completely correct, you and others may be right in saying “I do not know what I am talking about”.
BUT….
Think to your self, if the banks can not pass their own stability tests that they invented, and the bank of England can not think of raising interest rates by any significant amount as it would stop any green shoots…. one only has to walk down the high street and see the amount of boarded-up shops… The UK has never recovered since 2008 by any degree one would call true growth.
Remember when we all could strive to buy our own house with our hard grafted earnings? Well wages have stagnated and now the young cannot afford the deposit to buy a house and if they can any shock interest rates would see them unable to keep up the repayments on a mortgage.
ASK YOURSELF is that a healthy economy? IS THAT the prosperous UK we have has in the past? If a young person wants to buy a house they have to turn to their parents to get a deposit. The home owner’s age has also grown. You almost have to be in your 30 to 35 to even consider buying a house as the income you generate is so low, on top of the university debit of some £50k that you will be paying back.
Any case what do I know, it is only a man on the street viewpoint.
I am nearly 50 and starting again since my divorce. Its even harder now to get a mortgage and help to buy when you are are a contractor is a complete farse.
The UK is seen as a cash cow to the EU they just want the money, and they ar frightening everyone to reverse Brexit so they keep thier cash cow.
We get less than a ⅓ of the money we put in back from the EU. If we don’t pay it to them we have 100% for our economy and services, as long as the Government uses it correctly.
Same with overseas aid, stop it, feed your own people first not the rest of the world.
As for road taxes, watching that report last night on TV, the Government collects 35billion a year in road tax and fines. But only spends 10Billion, so what happened to the other 25?
Makes you think.
You have no Idea what you are talking, do you?
You are probably correct …. Just my viewpoint. Do you know more than the rest of us that you are not letting on?
Can I ask you a few questions before submitting to your wisdom and one line comment?
Are you in favour of Brexit? What do you think happened and what should PM Mrs May do?
Easy to criticise, but harder to provide a more intelligent response, (not that I am saying my response was intelligent, as you indicated).
“Not long time ago” is still trying to understand the meaning of “Intelligent” so don’t hold your breath waiting for an answer.
And the last time the UK was close to self-sufficiency was the WW2. The Natzis cut off food supplies to break the will out the British. They were proven wrong so why not do it again!
Biggest load of rubbish ive read in a long long long time!!!!
I so agree.. Because of my age, I remember a time before Brexit. Before the EU. England was fine, our lovely little island was self sufficient.. We will be again. All this scare mongering is what it is.. Scare mongering. EU wants our money and wants us to fail. I truly believe that we won’t fail when out, we will thrive..
This is the sort of comment that I feel sums up a lot of what is some of the issues. ENGLAND is not the the lovely little island. It is part of the United Kingdom including Scotland, Wales & Northern Ireland. Not everything in Gt Britain is England and we are not all English. It’s a selfish ignorant attitude that I hear all the time and perhaps if the ‘English’ saw us as Britain and British half the issues would be overcome.
In 1939 most of our drugs were made in Germany after September 3rd that year we had to find a way around the problem. Authorities used youth groups, scouts and guides to collect wild plants from which drugs were made.
If we could do it then we can do it now
Project reality: you do not leave your largest seamless market of 500 million people after 45 yrs without massive impacts. This is just one thing …big companies wanting a bright future will leave too and trade from within the single market without massive hassle. Farage sold a fantasy as did Boris Johnson and they are the real enemies.
Peter, a very narrow context of reality you are quoting, there are far more reasons why 17million+ voted to leave the EU and not all about migration as your side love to quote. maybe you should get out there and question people why they voted as the did and then come back with your conclusions
Well that is the most constructive comment I have read, lets shout project fear, ignore the reality lets wait until it is too late.
I don’t understand why they simply can’t hardcore over a few fields in the Dover and Folkestone areas and use those as lorry parks. If there is no deal, they’re going to be needed for evermore
More fake news from a journalist whose Editor has said, “Go out and don’t come back until you’ve got a story!”
I wonder whether France and Belgium are doing the same.
No because they aren’t as dependant on produce from the “other side”.
But they export more to us than we do to them, so they will have the problem.
No there are 30 countries in the single market all trading freely. We are leaving and will be alone. Crazy and most wrstern Europe enjoy better wages, pensions, hosputal care, cheaper transport, job rights and better infrastructure. Like Albania we are out and will struggle.
But it’s a much higher percentage of our GDP, because our GDP is a lot smaller than that of the EU-27.
Is it at all possible that Manston Airport could be used as a Cargo Hub, easing some of the congestion, and using it to fly in the fresh products and drugs needed? This idea was mooted a few years ago but thrown out by its then owner.
Following a hard Brexit it is quite possible that no planes will fly to or from the UK. Have a look at European “Open Skies” policy.
THAT’S WHY AIR LINES LIKE EASYJET, THOMAS COOK,TUI AND JET2 HAVE BEEN REGISTERING THEIR PLANES IN EUROPE TO AVOID THE PROBLEM!
Get a life…..
Is it at all possible that part of Manston Airport could be used as a Cargo Hub for fresh products and drugs, easing a lot of the lorry congestion on the M26. This idea was put up a few years ago, but thrown out by the then owners.
If anything it should be used as an airport! They cost a fortune to build and we need more of them not less and stop developers closing many existing airfields as they are deemed as brown field sites for housing estate.
WE SHOULD BE ENCOURAGING MORE USE OF RAILWAYS NOT AIRCRAFT TO KEEP POLLUTION LEVELS DOWN. RATHER THAN SEND LORRIES ACROSS, WHY NOT SEND CONTAINER TRAINS(KNOWN AS INTER MODAL) AND UNLOAD WELL AWAY FROM THE TUNNEL AS THEY DO WITH TRAIN FROM CHINA.
Good ideas if we had a rail infrastructure that could cope with the number of goods you are suggesting. At present we struggle to cope with people using the rail service. Our rail service is a jock when you put it up against China. It cost more to go by rail than to fly… Something wrong don’t you think?
This is a totally unacceptable situation. Lorries will start using A roads and the congestion will be horrendous. All MP’S whose constituents will be affected by this, the whole of Kent and Sussex should be petitioning very vigorously against this.
Its pointless using A roads if they cant get across the channel anyway! Petition against Brexit if anything, that’s the root cause.
Even simpler, just employ more customs officers, they need to start taking them on now,
AND WHO PAYS THEIR WAGES-YOU AND ME!
Worth every penny Harry, even yours
But they voted leave and they knew what they were voting for.
TO BE HONEST I DON’T THINK THE BREXITIERS REALIZED WHAT WAS INVOLVED IN GETTING OUT OF THE EU-I SUSPECT THAT A LOT OF THE POLITICIANS THEMSELVES UNDERSTAND THE RAMIFICATIONS OF WHAT THEY WERE PERSUADING US TO DO IN VOTING OUT.
AGREE
Why can’t they use Manston airfield, it has a very long runway?
If anything it should be used as an airport! They cost a fortune to build and we need more of them not less and stop developers closing many existing airfields as they are deemed as brown field sites for housing estate.
Those little old airports are way out of date and uneconomic. Who wants to land in the middle of Kent anyway or live under yet more flight paths?
The runway at Manston Airport is the second longest runway in the UK, after the longest runway at Stansted.
That’s incorrect. Manston only had about 9,000 ft and Stansted 10,000 ft. Heathrow Gatwick, Manchester and now Birmingham all have longer runways than Stansted. Several more had runway lengths equal to Manston.
Long enough, sure, but not the longest.
Nothing to do with uneconomic, its all to do with land development prices and Gordon Prescott dropping a clanger and marking them as brownfield sites. Flight paths are more of an issue because aircraft are honey potting due to the lack of them. Greenham Common should have been opened up not dug up, Manston should be used, Plymouth with a currently closed airport and a city of 250,000 people, Upper Hayford should be opened as indeed most RAF sites that are hardly used, they are the uneconomic ones we pay for, small fields have to pay for themselves. Luton, Gatwick, Stanstead, Heathrow should all have been told you can have a new runway if you can pay for it as opposed to waste squillions on investigations and do nothing for 20 years! And yes I have been a pilot since 1984 and know a little about the industry and nothing flight wise will change with BREXIT other than a form or two (maybe three!) as we are NOT leaving the European Openskies or EASA regs and licences.
Sadly the EU are too far up their own backsides of self importance and effectively control freaks, what I don’t follow on the NI boarder issue is why from day one we need a hard border as much as we should have the right to install one and take back control if “goods” going across a line are not causing any problems and is “respected” live with random checks and you up the anti if there is a real problem? Or is this too simply and too obvious.
too simple. You dont understand the politics of N Ireland. The peace agreement is about having the illusion of a united Ireland. If you have hard border the IRA will be at it again
What Andrew N said plus:
Do you not remember the lengths they went to to profit from the north & south being “different”? Tunnels; barns spanning the border; country roads busier at night than they ever were during the day. All to make an illegal profit.
And that’s ignoring the politics.
Actually this seems to be the one upside of Brexit: we’re all going to lose out – except the smugglers!
And you think it is any different now?
You miss my point completely you should have the right to a boarder but it does not mean it has to be enforced its not the same as the UK being next to North Korea you only ever have to enforce any rule if people abuse or break it. No one would want to see the troubles back and N & S would have a vested interest to make a no hard boarder work.
Rubbish we are leaving and the EU countries like the world think we are bonkers. The pound has sunk for two years, prices are increasing, investment is dropping and companies are moving , staff are going back to the continent. Its self harm just as the FT predicted. Families will suffer from Brexit poverty.
Not as far up their own backsides as those who promoted and lied about BREXIT!
Too many think its 1815, Wellington with his army and Nelson with his great navy, The Raj, “The sun never setting on the Empire” and all that c**p.
Brits should wake up and smell the coffee beans, were a small Mickey Mouse European country!!
KH
And it’s all because of people like you.
Fake news, creating a fearful situation – all such things come from the Brexiteers! This is a reality – the Brexit Generals are calling for all of us to jump in to oblivion.
Easy to say “fake” but these are facts. The number of vehicles crossing with two just extra minutes checking equals miles of queues. It’s maths! All Brexiteers admit businesses will take a big hit. You’ve heard a number of leading Brexiteers making statements like “F@ck business”. You know many leading Brexiteers have move their wealth aboard so they don’t take a hit. Yet you, and most other Brexiteers, stick your head in the sand and say “fake news”.
Kenn, Please let us know where you got your crystal Ball from that can tell the future. You believe what you believe as you only listen to what you want to hear with no regard to the opposite side of the coin.
Who wrote this load. A dyed in the wool remainer? Brexit or no Brexit the french have caused us to use operation stack for years. This work is contingency because the influential people along the M20 (NIMBY’s) didn’t want a lorry park near them.
Project Fear part 2
You mean 102
Clean break away please. No deal for me. Lets make our own rules. If the Pro-Eu’ers don’t like it, go eff off to the slums of Germany and tell me it’s all wonderful being part of the EU. Roads Closed? No problem, will just get a flight. Rather go places outside of the EU all day long though anyway. Places where you have to pay for a temporary visa anyway, and guess what, I don’t mind.
…and what if you live in East Kent and want to get to somewhere else in the UK, or want to get home when you’ve been outside Kent? I used to live in Folkestone and it was always a real pain when they shut the A20/M20.
I reckon you just missed the point of the article entirely. There is no such thing as a ‘clean’ break with the EU. It’s going to be a messy business.
Looks like your brains are in your pants!!!
You should always notice that these statements always include the words ‘could’ or ‘may’ etc, it’s all guesswork, the same as the things forecast that would happen if the original vote was for leave. Few if any of those predictions ever came true.
It’s like those companies who are warning that any delays in goods om ‘JUst In Time’ deliveries would also cause huge problems. Strange how we don’t hear of any problems for these types of deliveries when various motorways are blocked by accidents etc…
MAKE IT INTO A TOLL ROAD AND LETS EARN MONEY FROM THE EU WHO WANT TO USE OUR ROADS FOR FREE ?
er, we are using the roads to export our goods in our lorries in import things you want to buy. Like fresh food…
AS I HAVE SAID-SEND IT BY RAIL NOW WE HAVE THE CHANNEL TUNNEL
If good are coming into this country the tail back will be in france
THEY HAVE MORE SPACE TO CREATE A CUSTOMS AREA THAN WE HAVE SO YOUR ARGUMENT DOESN’T STAND UP
More twaddle from HARRY
Why were we not told this could happen as a consequence of leaving along with all the other disadvantages. What else have the “experts” not told us.
There were plenty of reports out prior to the referendum which gave the full facts. Unfortunately most people couldn’t be bothered reading them and with the blatant lies being put out by the Brexiteers, millions of people were duped. Its about time people took responsibility for their actions, this vile government should lead it.
The Full Facts as you put it given out by the Remain campaign were also full of misleading statements as well as those from the Leave Campaign so it seems to me that both sides of the camp are to blame for the final result. Those who voted to Remain now paint those who voted Leave as Unintelligent, Racist, Morons who should never be allowed to vote again. Whereas those who voted to Leave look on the Remainers as whinging, undemocratic, sulking, dummy spitting dictators who have vested interests in the EU
WHEN HAVE YOU EVER KNOWN POLITICIANS GIVE US THE FULL FACTS TO MAKE A SOUND JUDGEMENT ON ANYTHING-DON’T BE DAFT.
I think most of the people who have commented are too young to recall what used to happen in the 60’s, when we were not part of the EU. Everything was stopped; any goods you had bought (e.g. a radio, or clothes) in Europe were subject to an import duty and vice-versa – so that’s really good for trade, isn’t it? It also meant 100% checks, not the odd “random” search. I can’t imagine why the same would not be true again, of both tourist and freight traffic. Leaving the EU is a complete farce; it was only ever about David Cameron’s inability to control the barking eurosceptic right-wing of his party, not about this country. Sadly he didn’t have the guts to tell them to support the party line or get out and so we have come to this. It was eagerly supported by people at the top of the tree with vested interests in turning us into (as John Major so eloquently put it) “a cut-price Singapore, stranded off the coast of Europe, but without either its climate or its confidence”. I’d also add without its standard of education. It’s all going to be a nice little low-tax break for big corporations and the
very rich. As for the rest of us – you wait and see what it does to the shopping basket each month … oh and the NHS … oh and any other taxes the “newly-independent” government decides it needs to levy on us to plug the black hole left in our budget by the EU monies that come back into our country. As a very wise person once said … you need to be careful what you wish for.
Not true. We don’t have 100% checks on tourists from outside the EU and never did with Europe before joining the EEC. We simply didn’t have the blue lane but just green and red with random (or “intelligence led”) checks on the green lane. There’s got to be some way such as having seals/high-tech locks on the trailers/containers that show they can’t have been tampered with after having been checked before departure that their contents match the dispatch note. The dispatch note and accompanying customs documents can be submitted in advance so the EU/UK can be confident that all relevant duty has been paid. There is a tech solution as the UK has suggested but the EU don’t want to know.
What happened to taking control of our borders?
Caroline your memory is warped! NOT everything was stopped only those customs thought might be smuggling or up to no good.
One thing we did have was a lot more customs officials , sadly with cutbacks we have less than ever, and therein lies the problem!
that confused me lol. I can’t remember everything being checked at the border going through when I was going over to France all the time. Passports maybe but not every vehicle that’s for sure. We definitely need more customs personnel regardless of Brexit
LONG BEFORE CAROLINE’S’ MEMORY, EVERY NON UK RESIDENT ENTERING THIS COUNTRY WAS SUBJECT TO CUSTOMS SEARCH AND ALL IMPORTS WERE SUBJECT TO INSPECTION. DO WE REALLY WANT TO GO BACK TO THOSE DAYS? I THINK NOT-BUT IT COULD HAPPEN WITH OR WITHOUT EXTRA BOARDER CONTROL STAFF.
Adam, you make a good point but also consider the capabilities of computer systems in the 60s and 70s. They really weren’t up to much. Yes, we need more customs officers but not the huge amount that some seem to be talking about.
If you are my age Caroline – 85 – you will remember that ALL life was tough in the 40s to 60s, gradually getting easier. It was not the EU that made things better, and you are not constantly stopped if you come back from China, Vietnam, the US, Australia or even Russia now, as you were then. I have worked in all of these countries (and many more) and my vote for the EEC long ago has turned out to be a mistake. That is why I changed my mind this time. You live and learn!
Close all motorways and slow all traffic down. Motorways are one of the reasons drivers speed everywhere on unsuitable roads for driving at speed on. Motorways encourage fast driving so some want to drive everywhere fast
Err. Aren’t motorways designed to be driven at speed on? That’s the whole point of them. Let’s go back to the good old days of the horse and cart and steam trains why don’t we.
As you have to be at the ferry usually 1 hour before departing could it not be done in the que ? ie done in the lanes ? just a thought,
what ferry? Tunnel!!
Well yes. That’s how it worked prior to the customs union. The issue is more about trucks than tourists and the extra time it will take to check its contents against the dispatch note/customs forms. Just look at how they’ve had to use the M20 as a lorry park whenever the French have one of their regular strikes or there’s some problem. Inevitably if the EU decide to be jobsworths about it (all evidence so far suggests they will) then we’ll have huge tailbacks. Maybe we should once again look at rail freight.
Maybe it’s time to look at no having Brexit?
Rich have you any idea just how much freight IS moved by rail? Its a heck of a lot more than you might think. There has been billions invested in rail freight movement in recent years. Go and sit by a mainline at night and observe.
Totally agree with you on freight traffic. We’ve reached the point now where lines closed under Beeching (and others) are being reopened simply as freight corridors. Anyway other countries send freight across their borders by rail and they don’t have queues. Just more project fear.
WELL SAID-I TOTALLY AGREE-PLEASE READ MY EARLIER COMMENT ON THIS SUBJECT.
If we were at war with Europe, this idea might have credence. We are NOT at war therefore it is contrived nonsense.
Yet more doom and gloom from the Remainer camp who have been running around like chickens with their heads cut off since they LOST the referendum telling us the sky is falling, like Chicken Little. None of which as happened so far. Freedom is not free, you have to work for it.
OBVIOUSLY YOU ARE A BREXITIER. MAN UP- DID YOU HONESTLY KNOW IN ADVANCE THE COST OT OUR GOVERNMENTS’ TIME AND THUS OURSELVES AS WELL AS THE FULL IMPLICATIONS TO THE ECONOMY INVOLVED JUST TO KEEP IMMIGRANTS OUT?
PERSONALLY, I WAS AGAINST JOINING THE EU IN THE FIRST PLACE BUT NOW WE ARE IN WE SHOULD STAY IN-AFTER ALL THE MAXIM IS TWO WRONGS DO NOT MAKE A RIGHT!
more scare mongering from people who do not want us to leave the bank we pay more into than most other countries do.
Project Fear working on overdrive now !!!
Project Fear working in overdrive now !!!!
Sorry posted twice 🙁
Here is what the Road Haulage Association think https://www.rha.uk.net/getmedia/c98d0219-fcf7-434e-b9cd-51f2ff0c316c/180730-Brexit-pull-your-finger-out-final.pdf.aspx look at paragraphs 10-12. They aren’t politicians with an axe to grind, they are the guys in the trucks who know how borders work – both within the EU and between the EU and “third countries” (which is what the UK becomes to the EU post Brexit) Not “Project Fear” but a realistic assessment of consequences. Border controls are not an optional extra – they are an international obligation. Customs docs don’t happen by magic either – they cost money for computer software, documents, customs agents – all of which cost time and money (which the 300,000 businesses trading with the EU today don’t have to spend) Bottom line – Project Reality.
I have just read the report by the Road Haulage Association (posted by Dave R ) and it makes for quite sombre reading in the event of a No Deal outcome. Good to read the facts from an industry which could be badly affected. No doubt there will be some people who refuse to believe it and think they know better than those who actually work in the industry, but such is life. Regarding the use of Manston Airport as a lorry park, I have visited that area a couple of times in the past and seem to remember small country roads which would be quite unsuitable for large numbers of heavy lorries.
Marion, When was the last time you visited Manston Airport???? In the late 50’s. There is a Dual carriageway running right past it (A299) and only a short distance by minor road to gain access and how do think large lorries gained access when it was a commercial airport, ie. DHL. You need to get out more.
The British are a very inventive nation.
Those who need to find a way, will. ( If they have the incentive )
Only anti brexit sectors will ,gloryfy it
There is no “British nation”. The UK is supposedly a union of equal countries, Scotland, England, Northern Ireland and Wales. In reality it operates more as an English colonial state.
Firstly, here is north or southbound carriageways on the M26, they run east west!
Secondly it isn’t the answer. Far better to turn the lorries back to their original starting points, rather than clog a vital link to Kent. If the motorway were to close, given the awkward and incomplete layout of the motorway junctions, that is going to have a huge adverse environmental effect along the A25 road not to mention the towns and villages along that road, including Borough Green, Seal, Sevenoaks, Brasted, Westerham, Limpsfield and Oxted.
The whole point of the M26 is that it provides a link between the M25 and the M20 motorways towards the Channel ports, and that is the reason it was built and enable traffic to bypass the above named settlements. It was never built to end up as a lorry park.
Without it, long distance traffic will be forced either to use the A25 or to use the M25 to Junction 4 to get to the M20. As the entire road layout is a signalised roundabout, that is going to cause huge chaos to the that junction and the Swanley area.
I would love to know the name of the DfT official that dreamed up that lunatic idea, clearly he doesn’t live in the SE of England.
The M25/M20 Juncion at Swanley is #3, not #4.
Another point that is that Operation Stack only occurs when the French go on strike or very severe weather prevents any cross-channel ferries from operating. That doesn’t happen 24/7 365 days a year. If the doom & gloom predictions are correct, this poposal effectively means permanent closure of the eastbound carriageway of the M26.
“Port officials have warned that increasing the average time it takes to clear customs by as little as two minutes could lead to 17-mile traffic jams.”
I would like to see the methodology and calculations used to arrive at this speculative conclusion.
As ever, the people of Kent are being treated with utter contempt as our motorways are crippled by ongoing roadworks and our county is yet again likely to be turned into an enormous lorry park. I suggest Kent declares independence and charges everyone just sufficient to drive through our county that it is not worth their time and expense to take another route. Failing that, the people of Kent should take to their vehicles en masse and blockade other parts of the country, so that everyone gets a taste of the stress and inconvenience we currently suffer on a daily basis
Just another of the benefits we get from “Durrr – we got to stop those foreigners coming” Brexit voters. Thanks guys.
Not the Will that posted project Fear – just “project Realism”
They said converting the now closed Manston Airport into a channel crossing customs post and vehicle park was impractical.
This is the alternative?!
As we export 70 billion £ worth less of goods to the EU than they do to us, and as in farm goods it is six Billion we send them but fifteen Billion they send us, where will the queues be? The French farmers will not stand for that massive loss, and any attempt to slow trade in THEIR perishables will lead to the French government begging the EU to save them from their striking farmers. The project fear people never know the facts!
IF THE SPANISH CAN SEND THEIR CROPS IN CONTAINER TRAINS THROUGH THE TUNNEL- WHY DON’T THE FRENCH DO THE SAME. THE TRAIN SYSTEM SHOULD BE USED MORE BUT THEY DON’T WANT TO LOAD A CONTAINER ON TO A LORRY TO UNLOAD ONTO A TRAIN AND DO THE REVERSE THE OTHER END. WE SHOULD USE OUR TRAINS MORE THE WAY CONTAINER SHIPS ARE.
This is all such rubbish. It was not that long ago that we were NOT a member of the EU and I don’t remember the ports or the Motorway network being in chaos. Also, this will also happen on the other side of the channel and it won’t take long before they come up with an alternate system. This scare mongering has got to stop.
YOU HAVE NOT CONSIDERED THE EASIER ACCESS TO THE PORTS AS A RESULT OF IMPROVED ROAD SYSTEMS AND THE MASSIVE GROWTH IN GOODS FLOWING BACK AND FORTH SINCE THOSE DAYS.
Does anyone seriously think that these truck parks will alleviate the delay in transporting parts required for the automobile manufacturing industry and that those said industries will remain within the UK if there is a No Deal Brexit? And what of the cost to the road haulage industry, trucks earn money when their wheels are turning not stationery.
Looking at ferry timetables a while back I see that they are assuming the status quo will prevail after Brexit but if the number of trucks crossing the channel are delayed/reeduced then surely so will the ferries resulting in fewer trips and therefore yet more costs to add to the transport and logistics industries both here and on the continent.
Speaking as an ex truck driver the last thing I would have wanted would have been to be stuck in the middle of a motorway with minimal basic facilities for hours or maybe days on end nearly every time I wanted to cross the channel.
So avoid Calais , within 10 days the French would bypass EU regs
The M25 is a Car park anyway
Drama no. Drama …
The M25 is a Csr Park most of the time anyway!!!
Time to take on more customs officers. The government need to be proactive on this, rather than like most governments of any colour wait until the manure hits the fan. We also need to order up more fishery protection vessels, currently Eu fishermen take 80% of the catch from UK waters, this need to change in favour of UK fishermen
You do realise that a lot UK companies sold their quotas to the EU, allowing them to legitimately fish “our” waters… All done for a quick buck of course. So we now have the situation where half a dozen EU producers have 97% of the UK quota. This goes against the core principle of the common fisheries policy… What this (and previous governments) done about it? Nothing….
It’s amazing that the Poison Dwarf leader of the SNP never denounces the EU with respect to the Scottish Fishing Industry and how it has suffered under EU regulation. For a leader who idolises the EU she needs to explain why she has not fought for the Scotish Fisheries and denounced the EU regulations.
good grief what on earth are the media going to talk about when Brexit is over. ‘Could, might, possibly’ happen are all words that some readers will miss when reading all the various articles, I’m sure the media would write these words in small print if they could. Lets get a grip and stop being so negative about the whole thing. Yes we’re venturing into the unknown but what opportunities. Instead of wining we can all start by buying British as much as possible support what we’ve got. Problem is we, the British public, have had it so cheap ad easy for so long and we all know we don’t like change
So what action is France taking presumably it will have the same effect
I am sick o the doom and gloom that is bandied about, NOBODY knows what will happen if there is no deal because it has never happened before. These idiots who want us to remain are trying to frighten us to stay. Do they think are stupid? It is you idiots who are trying to bully us into remaining in the EU because it isn’t what you wanted. Maybe if you behaved like adults you would back Teresa May, with support of the members of parliament we would get a better deal. If there is no deal it will by YOUR fault.
Lovely English!!!
Will it bollocks.
About time to start charging all the foreign lorries for access to our road network.
The UK doe’s charge foreign lorries to use our roads by means of a toll, although this is not nearly enough
Once again an argument based on supposition that one thing or another is going to happen. On the assumption that there is no deal on Brexit why suppose that the volume of vehicles crossing from the EU will continue at the present level if the import barriers are imposed on UK exports to Europe. No deal will mean reciprocal penalties being imposed on their exports to here as our exports would be to them.
Until the full details of the negotiations are completed, one way or another any speculation is just nonsense surely.
However this should not prevent the government from taking whatever steps are necessary to prepare for all eventualities however outlandish they may appear at face value at this time.
Why are we even in this position about a NO DEAL brexit? The Government has had years to get a deal sorted they should of had a plan in place before they considered brexit. This should of been sorted by now. But the Government yet again sat on their hands thinking that Britain would never vote to leave. Then a sudden panic when the voters voted to leave and they need to get a deal to leave. How long has been since Britain voted to leave and we still not got a deal in place and there is talk of a second vote as the they can’t stand upto Europe and sort something. Now the sudden panic as time is running out and we will be leaving European Union without a deal.
Too long we have been dictated by and relied on Europe while Britain looses its identity and what makes Britain Great was lost to Europe. We shouldn’t be in this position of motorways being made into lorry parks and looking at a NO DEAL.
Its a pity the Borders of Ireland have been made the scapegoats for all this hysteria, but I’m sure there are intelligent people around who will sort it. We’ve had problems before and overcome them and I’m sure we will again. Teresa May is working hard and doing her best, but sadly, that will not please everyone. if Westminster outs her for a new Leader, whose to say there won’t be bigger problems or even starting negotiations over again in some areas. I’m waiting to see what happens. No divorce has ever been completely amicable and that’s what is happening here, we are after an amicable settlement beneficial to all parties.
Again Grayling shows his poor decision making and consultation. He did the same with the Southern railway dispute with his failure to meet all parties to discuss an outcome. His time is overdue to go.
Good riddance!
Absolute BS,
They said the planes will not fly,
The banks will collapse,
We will grind to a halt with no fuel,
We will starve, there will be no food on the shelves.
We all all be ill, no medicines from the big bad EU,
So much #FAKENEWS & #PROJECTFEAR
DO NOT LISTEN TO IT!
We should just leave now and not be bullied no more by these scaremongers!
They are scared as the gravy train needs our money.
Other countries are waiting to leave after us.
Just get on with it!
Well said Donald!!!
Harem scare em still as strong as ever. It didn’t work first time round did it.
When Mrs Mayhem had to decide on a strategy for leaving the EU she was badly advised and put down her red lines far too soon. Too late she learnt the implications of those red lines and we are now stuck with the border issues. Had she chosen to leave the EU in stages instead of a super duper huge FTA, her current problems would not be so many or so great. We could’ve be well on our way out by taking the Norway Option as stage one. (That’s the option that Cameron very wrongly claimed was all “pay and no say” before the referendum and then campaigned for after the referendum). Now, at best, we are looking at years and years of genuine all pay no say while we try to negotiate the impossible proposition of not being in the EEA or single market while keeping the borders open and free flowing. Impossible because we are asking for mutual recognition of regulations in areas which the EU doesn’t even allow for in its member countries.