Logistics Industry "Deeply Concerned" Single Trade Window "Shelved"

(Copyright text, Rona Hunnisett, Logistics UK, reproduced with kind permission)

Responding to reports that the Single Trade Window, a government IT scheme designed to simplify international trade for businesses, has been "shelved", James Mills, Head of Trade Policy at Logistics UK, said:

"These reports are deeply concerning. If true, they will be a blow for our members and there must be a credible alternative. Growing uncertainty makes it harder for businesses to plan and invest. The UK has fallen from 4th to 19th in the World Bank's Logistics Performance Index, and exporters continue to face unnecessary duplication and cost at the border.

"The Single Trade Window is not just about cutting red tape, it is also about growth and living standards. Previous government modelling suggested that a new post-Brexit border system, including efficiencies linked to a Single Trade Window, was expected to reduce costs for traders by around half a billion pounds a year. If the government wants to boost employment and raise living standards, cutting border friction must be at the heart of a trade-led growth strategy and is one of the quickest wins available."

Logistics UK is one of the UK's biggest business groups, representing logistics businesses which are vital to keeping the UK trading, and more than seven million people directly employed in the making, selling and moving of goods. With decarbonisation, new technology and other disruptive forces driving change in the way goods move across borders and through the supply chain, logistics has never been more important to UK plc. Logistics UK supports, shapes and stands up for safe and efficient logistics, and is the only business group which represents the whole industry, with members from the road, rail, water and air industries, as well as the buyers of freight services such as retailers and manufacturers whose businesses depend on the efficient movement of goods. For more information about the organisation and its work, please visit logistics.org.uk