Eurotunnel says Brexit talks give ‘glimmer of hope’

The private sector is leading contingency planning that will prevent unprecedented delays at ports in the UK if the country crashes out of the EU with no deal next March.

Speaking to heads of European travel businesses at an ETOA seminar, Eurotunnel said it was expecting there would be no change in the way it runs its business post Brexit, despite the EU insisting that a no-deal Brexit would lead to increased border controls, adding an extra 90 seconds to process each passenger.

Eurotunnel alone handles 50,000 to 60,000 passengers a day, so this would lead to hundreds of hours of extra processing from the first day of the new regime.

However, John Keefe, public affairs director for Eurotunnel parent company Getlink, said talks between the UK and France had led the company to believe that both sides intended to keep a ‘frictionless’ border.

"We are practically and pragmatically working towards solutions," he said, adding that predictions of serious delays to processing passengers had kick-started talks with regional French authorities such as Hauts-de-France.

"There is now a glimmer of hope that conversations have begun. We are taking a pragmatic view for customers and staff and we have contingency plans for all eventualities. The intent is that we will run our business [post-Brexit] as we do today, with the same frequency of service."

Neil Baylis, senior partner at K&L Gates, which reviewed the issues facing the industry including transport, financial bonding, consumer rights, visas and immigration, EHIC, passports, consumer rights and driving licenses said: "The British Government is ripping up the Open Skies agreement, and British airlines will have no automatic right to fly into EU airspace without a deal, but flights will carry on and free movement will not end, although there maybe prejudice against UK carriers not registered in the EU.

"I predict a sticking plaster to bring about pragmatic solutions."

He told delegates that they need to sit down with commercial partners to discuss whether they need a ‘Brexit clause’ in the case of undelivered services, to ensure that they are not liable for consequential loss.

Baylis said it will take at least five years to agree a free trade agreement. "It’s likely that a blind eye will be turned in some instances – for example for the need for British drivers to have international drivers licences, but we can’t assume that will be the case. Companies need to plan for the worst case scenario."

His colleague Louisa Cole recommended ETOA members take an audit of their staff and their nationalities to assess the cost of potential visas required for posted UK workers, such as tour guides, within the EU. Electronic visas for the EU are £80. She said: "Companies need to gather data from employees to assess the impact and make contingency plans."

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