Freight representatives welcome EU-UK transport contingency proposals

Logistics UK says emergency measures for road and air access for logistics operators are a welcome safety net, but urges negotiators to deliver a free trade agreement.

Freight representatives have given a guarded welcome to a proposed set of targeted contingency measures from the European Commission this week to ensure basic reciprocal air and road connectivity between the EU and the UK in the event that no trade deal is agreed by the end of this year, after talks to finalise a deal showed no significant progress.

Freight transport association Logistics UK said the emergency measures for road and air access for logistics operators were “a welcome safety net”, but urged negotiators to deliver a free trade agreement for the benefit of companies on both sides.

Sarah Laouadi, European Policy Manager at Logistics UK, commented: “Today’s announcement of contingency measures for road and air access for logistics operators for six months after the end of the transition period, if adopted in time, will come as a welcome safety net for logistics businesses which have been unable to plan for the future, due to a lack of certainty on whether and how they will be able to operate in three weeks’ time.

“However, six months is not a very long time in business, and for Logistics UK members, it is vital that negotiators return to the table to work out a free trade agreement between the UK and EU to ensure the security of their businesses and livelihoods in the years to come.”

Announcing the measures, which would require the UK to reciprocate, the European Commission said it will “continue to do its utmost to reach a mutually beneficial agreement with the UK”, but stressing that “there is now significant uncertainty whether a deal will be in place on 1 January 2021”.

It has put forward a set of “targeted contingency measures”, the aim of which “is to cater for the period during which there is no agreement in place. If no agreement enters into application, they will end after a fixed period.”

The Commission noted that a “no-deal” scenario will cause disruptions in many areas, but some sectors would be disproportionately affected due to a lack of appropriate fall-back solutions and because in some sectors, stakeholders cannot themselves take mitigating measures. The Commission is therefore putting forward today four contingency measures to mitigate some of the significant disruptions that will occur on 1 January in case a deal with the UK is not yet in place:

Basic air connectivity: A proposal for a Regulation to ensure the provision of certain air services between the UK and the EU for 6 months, provided the UK ensures the same.

Aviation safety: A proposal for a Regulation ensuring that various safety certificates for products can continue to be used in EU aircraft without disruption, thereby avoiding the grounding of EU aircraft.

Basic road connectivity: A proposal for a Regulation covering basic connectivity with regard to both road freight, and road passenger transport for 6 months, provided the UK assures the same to EU hauliers.

Fisheries: A proposal for a Regulation to create the appropriate legal framework until 31 December 2021, or until a fisheries agreement with the UK has been concluded – whichever date is earlier – for continued reciprocal access by EU and UK vessels to each other’s waters after 31 December 2020. In order to guarantee the sustainability of fisheries and in light of the importance of fisheries for the economic livelihood of many communities, it is necessary to facilitate the procedures of authorisation of fishing vessels.

The Commission said readiness and preparedness for 1 January 2021 “is now more important than ever. Disruption will happen with or without an agreement between the EU and the UK on their future relationship. This is the natural consequence of the United Kingdom’s decision to leave the Union and to no longer participate in the EU Single Market and Customs Union. The Commission has always been very clear about this.

The United Kingdom left the European Union on 31 January 2020. At the time, both sides agreed on a transition period until 31 December 2020, during which EU law continues to apply to the UK. The EU and the UK are using this period to negotiate the terms of their future partnership, but the outcome of these negotiations “is uncertain”, the Commission noted.

Source: Lloyd´s