Cllr Denise Mullen: Cost of Brexit Already Being Felt
Aontú Cllr for Mid Ulster & Deputy Leader Denise Mullen has pointed the cost of Brexit already being felt across the North of Ireland, and called on the Northern Executive and Irish government to step up to offset the cost of Brexit.
Cllr Denise Mullen:
“On New Year’s Eve, the North was finally pulled out of the EU by Boris Johnson’s Tories, and the cost of the Brexit is already being felt across the North of Ireland. Businesses are facing increased costs and delay to their doing business. Brexit has brought additional red tape and additional costs to businesses reliant on deliveries. The business sector as a whole is very fearful. To bring in deliveries from Manchester, there is the fear of transport and customs costs and even where business owners go to Britain to pick up goods, that we will incur travel costs and additional costs. Small business owners, such as myself, are already looking to whether bringing in goods via Dublin or ferry crossing at Dublin would be more cost effective. SMEs have been punished these past few months, red tape and additional cost will push hundreds, if not thousands over the edge.”
“In addition to the cost to small businesses, there is a real concern that Brexit is now making exports and deliveries not worth the while of bigger businesses. According to several reports, British cheeses may become rarity in the North due to health certification requirements. Big companies like Tkmaxx and John Lewis have suspended exports to the North due to the difficulties with customs declarations. Customers are now having to provide more and more information just to get a jumper delivered from Manchester to Belfast. All of these difficulties will lead to price increases or scarcity of certain goods and services. The cost of Brexit is hitting the North hardest, and the Northern Executive cannot continue their headless chicken routine any longer.”
