“The UK’s economy grows when it trades, but unnecessary trade friction is increasing costs, reducing competitiveness and preventing potential economic growth. The best way for the government to unlock trade-led growth and raise living standards is by using this summit to fix the trade frictions between ourselves and our largest trading partner.
“With real progress recently being made to remove costly SPS checks, we are urging UK and European leaders to turn their attention to fixing further barriers to trade, such as slow digital border processes and the ’90 within 180-day’ restrictions that limit the number of days HGV drivers and other logistics workers can spend in the 29 Schengen Area countries. For the bulk distribution sector specifically, these restrictions and delays at border checkpoints have a direct impact on the movement of tankers and bulk haulage vehicles carrying time-sensitive liquid and dry bulk goods across the Channel, adding cost and complexity to an already tightly-margined part of the supply chain.”
