HOLYHEAD, Wales – Under swirling gray clouds, Bryan Anderson leans out of the cabin window of his truck to vent his frustration over the new paperwork that has delayed his journey through Britain’s second largest ferry port by half a day.
“It’s a nightmare,” he said. Anderson said and explained how he spent hours waiting at a depot 250 kilometers further for export documents needed due to Brexit. The delay meant he had to reach Holyhead, in Wales, too late for the ferry he was planning to take to Dublin, and for the next one as well.
‘I’m about twelve hours behind schedule,’ he said as he was finally ready to board the Stena Adventurer for Dublin to drop off a package of packages for the Irish postal service.
The fear of red tape and red tape arising from the introduction of the new rules trading in Britain with the European Union which came into force on 1 January has led to serious predictions about the overwhelming timetable in British ports.
But so far the opposite has happened. Apart from hardened souls like mr. Anderson, trucks increasingly avoid ports like Holyhead. They are afraid of the mountains of paperwork now required for journeys that last month involved little more than driving to a ferry in one country and driving down to another country.
On Thursday, only a few dozen other trucks were on the same ferry as Mr. Anderson stood waiting in a large but almost empty parking lot on the harbor side. Holyhead works at half its normal capacity and staff are placed on the ground.
“It’s too much trouble to go through,” he said. Anderson said.
After months of uncertainty and tense negotiations, Prime Minister Boris Johnson finally concluded a trade agreement with the European Union on Christmas Eve. When Britain left the European market and customs union on January 1, it avoided the chaos that was closed during a dress rehearsal by French officials in December.
Yet the old system that allowed frictionless travel to and from European countries is over. Despite supporters’ claims that Brexit would reduce bureaucracy, companies have to produce millions of customs declarations, as well as new documentation such as health food certificates and proof of origin for a wide range of goods. Shipments of mixed goods – such as the parcels that Mr. Anderson wore – could mean an abundance of paperwork for drivers to cover everything worn.
Across Britain, the impact of the rules has surprised traders, causing a chain reaction that threatens some jobs and livelihoods.
Furious over costly delays, Scottish shellfish exporters have blocked parliament in London from protesting. A truckload of chips destined for a supermarket in Northern Ireland was detained for two days while the trucking company sought to prove the origin of the potatoes with which they were made, according to a British lawmaker. And more than 600 truck drivers have been fined for violating a rule designed to prevent congestion that requires them to have a permit to approach Britain’s busiest port, Dover in Kent.
Under the new rules, truck drivers must report their consignments to the authorities before reaching ports. Relatively few arrive without the paperwork – according to the port, only 7 percent are at Holyhead.
But that’s because many elsewhere are stuck waiting for papers.
The new system has also raised questions about the future of one of Europe’s busiest trade routes, between Ireland, which remains part of the European Union, and mainland Europe.
The fastest route for trucks is usually via a ferry from Dublin to Holyhead, then east to Dover on the English coast, and from there a short ferry ride to Calais in France.
Before the Brexit change, travel via the ‘agricultural bridge’ was cheap and reliable, required almost no paperwork, and allowed trucks to unload loads en route.
But this route has been hampered by a forest bureaucracy, with many companies opting for direct services between Ireland and France to stay within the European Union.
Whether this reflects gum problems or a fundamental shift is unclear, and the changes have been welcomed in some circles.
Some environmental campaigns are hoping that the decline in trade will be permanent and reduce the number of trucks crossing Britain.
Port operators expected a decline in trade as companies emptied the stock they built in December if there were no trade agreement. The pandemic has also hit trade and tourism, just as companies are adapting to the shaping of the Brexit era.
But there are fears that the hit to ports like Holyhead could have lasting consequences.
“Very loud alarm bells are ringing,” Rhun ap Iorwerth, a member of the Welsh Senate, or parliament, told Plaid Cymru, a party advocating independence for Wales.
“It’s clear that trade is declining a lot through the port,” he said. ‘I hope it’s a temporary phenomenon, but I’m afraid new trading patterns will be established here and I’m worried about work. The smaller the traffic through the port, the fewer people you need to work at the port. ”
Virginia Crosbie, a lawmaker at Johnson’s Conservative Party, said she expected ‘That the fluctuations in transport patterns we currently see will be short-lived’, referring to the benefits of the ‘land bridge’ route through England.
Others doubt it more and note that eight weekend ferry services from Holyhead to Dublin have already been canceled, while those between Ireland and France have been increased.
“Given the choice, I think a lot of the traffic has switched to the direct routes,” said William Calderbank, port operations manager at Holyhead, which is run by Stena Line, saying that although he expects many cases to return, some of it will not.
To heighten the problems of Holyhead, it is also losing business in ports in Scotland and Northern England that provide routes to Northern Ireland, which is part of the UK, which usually requires less bureaucracy.
It now makes little sense to send goods destined for Northern Ireland by Holyhead and then by truck northwards through Ireland – formerly a popular route.
And while companies need to work better on completing paperwork, they will face additional changes in the future. The British government is phasing in its own rules after Brexit and blowing most imports through.
But from July it will exercise full control as the Irish and French do now.
“We are only in phase one of the Brexit, and we have another one in July,” he said. Calderbank said.
This will increase the burden for companies that are already experiencing complicated regulations.
Andrew Kinsella, managing director of Gwynedd Shipping, a transport company headquartered in Holyhead, described how one consignment was held for seven hours in Ireland, while officials questioned whether it should be certified as a dairy product due to the milk contained in the cookies ‘s chocolate chips are contained.
Holyhead ‘is a ghost town’, he said. ‘You do not see the normal steady stream of vehicles every day; you’re lucky to see a handful of trucks when the ferries arrive. ‘
At Road King, a truck stop at Holyhead, another driver, Rob Lucas, parked at midnight at the place where he arrived at 6 a.m. to await approval to take the cargo into port.
He had no idea when the text message would come to move him, but he knew the delay had already ruined his next day’s schedule.
‘The only way I can explain it is to say that everything went free before; there was no waiting for paperwork; but last Friday I was detained in Kent for five hours, ”he said.
“We’re all trapped – one of our boys was here for four days in early January,” he said. Lucas said. “It’s awful, absolutely awful,” he added, and “I can only see it getting worse before it gets better.”