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B RE X I T PRE PARAT I ONS? Lissa Oliver
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t the time of writing, we are no nearer clarity on the Brexit issue.Will there be a deal? Will there be no deal? Will there be an extension, leading to a second referendum and no Brexit at all? We may not know what the future holds, but indications are that all governments are preparing for the possible border controls, which will have a serious impact on the movement of racehorses to and from the EU and the UK. Ireland, the Netherlands and Germany are the countries with the closest trade links with the UK, and the Netherlands launched a major information campaign at the end of January. Trade Minister Sigrid Kaag commented, “After Ireland, the Dutch economy is most entwined with that of the UK,” and warned that many small and medium companies had failed to make suffi fic i c i e n t p r e p a rat i o n f o r a no-deal Brexxit. T h e Ne t h e r l a n d s h a s m a d e p r o v i s i o n f o r m o r e t h a n 1 , 0 0 0 f u t u r e j o b s c r e at e d i n c u s t o m s a n d f o o d s a f e ty a g e n c i e s , b u t t h e go v e r n m e n t p o i n t s o u t t h at a no-dea l could also provide positive ne w oppor tunities for businesses. Whe ther or not there is a deal or the UK leaves on 29th March, the European Medicines
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Agency is relocating from London to Amsterdam. France, closely linked with the UK and Ireland within the racing industry, published a draft bill in January for a no-deal contingency, which will reinstate checks on goods and passengers to and from the UK, as well as inspections of food, plants and live animals. An ff have already additional 250 customs staff been recruited in 2019, and this is expected to increase to 700 by the end of next year. Prime Minister Edouard Philippe announced a €50m investment in ports and airports to cope with a no-deal Brexit. “The plan consists of legislative measures that aim to ensure that the rights of French citizens and businesses are protected”, he said. Germany has apparently lagged behind in providing public information and sup por t for businesse s re gardi ng Bre xit contingency plans but hass also recruited additional staff ff to deal with new economic relations with the UK . No-deal p r e p a r at i o n s i n c l u d e d e a l i n g w i t h t h e s t at u s o f a p p r o x i m at e l y 1 0 0 , 0 0 0 B r i t i s h citizens residing in Germany, as well as G ermans livi ng in the UK .
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Spain has at the time of writing made no public information available on its no-deal plans but is expected to agree reciprocal arrangements for 310,000 British citizens living in the country. A protocol on Gibraltar, due to be attached to the Brexit Withdrawal Agreement, will not come into eff ffect f if there is a no-deal, but Gibraltar is already outside the Customs Union and has a border control in operation. Staff ffi fing i in Spanish immigration off ffi fices i has been stepped up. In Ireland, the government has been proactive in provi viding i public information and supporting businesses. In February it launched a free-to-use Brexit SME Scorecard, an interactive online risk assessment tool for Irish companies to self-assess their exposure to Brexit. The assessment is based on six key pillars: business strategy, operations, innovation, sales and marketing, fin inance and people managem ment. Irish companies are told they can and should be taking immediate action to mitigate the potential risks and take advantage of any arising opportunities. The Scorecard, at ww ww w.prepareforbrexit.ie, w.