After a summit on July 8 at her Chequers estate, Prime Minister Theresa May said she had “listened to every possible idea and every possible version of Brexit,” revealing her plan for a “soft Brexit.”
But that agreement has collapsed, amid resignations and public humiliation as the prolonged heatwave has made tempers short. Then there is Parliament’s summer recess coming up – with May promising to take control of the Brexit talks – creating additional squabbling within the Conservative party, reports Vanity Fair.
The newly-appointed Brexit Secretary Dominic Raab, who took over the ill-fated post after David Davis quit in a huff, has some serious issues on his plate right now, with the biggest one being a worst-case scenario – A Brexit without a deal.
“I’m not going to allow us to be seen cowering in a corner, afraid of our own shadow,” he told MPs, explaining that while he would push for a deal, Britain would keep calm and carry on in the event of failure.
“I’m not quite so pessimistic as you may be, or perhaps some others, not when I look to the medium and long-term . . . actually, long-term, I think we would still be able to thrive,” he said.
The other issue? – Food supplies
The BBC is reporting that Raab has been a bit evasive when questioned by MPs as to whether the government has been stockpiling food supplies as a backup to a worst-case Brexit.
Raab said: “It would be wrong to describe it as the government doing stockpiling but we will look at this issue in the round and make sure that there is adequate food supply.” The thing is this – With just a little more than eight months left until the UK leaves the European Union, there is still no clarity on how trade will proceed.
And this is an important issue, seeing as nearly 50 percent of food eaten in the UK is either fresh or chilled – that includes ready meals. So there is no way to stock perishable foods for long periods of time.
Ian Wright, director general of the Food and Drink Federation (FDF), told Reuters if Britain left the EU next March without a deal, disruption at customs and border crossings could impact food supplies.
Commuters are facing major #travel disruption in parts of the UK, with intense heat causing rail schedule issues. Train speeds are being reduced in some areas to stop tracks from buckling #Heatwave pic.twitter.com/GWiJCcFusn
— The Weather Channel UK (@weather_UK) July 26, 2018
Add one more issue – The weather
“We’re going through the most extraordinary summer and we’re already seeing farmers struggling with crops, with feed for ruminants (cattle and sheep). There are vegetable shortages because there hasn’t been enough rain,” Wright told BBC radio.
At least 40 percent of the food consumed in the UK is imported from the EU, and the rest is made up of locally grown crops. And with the massive heatwave being experienced all over the Northern Hemisphere, farmers are already being hit with crop failures. Britain cannot expect to put all its reliance on local farmers.
So as Wright says, “Those businesses importing food, ingredients and finished goods will need to get their goods across the border before March 29 to ensure they don’t suffer disruption from customs changes.”
It may be that people are just running scared, however, the British Retail Consortium warned earlier this month that a no-deal Brexit would clog up food supplies, raise prices and throw retailers out of business.
