No-deal Brexit warning: leaked government docs say UK faces food, fuel and drug shortages
- Newspaper says document had been compiled this month to set out the ‘most likely aftershocks of a no-deal Brexit rather than worst-case scenarios’
Britain will face shortages of fuel, food and medicine if it leaves the European Union without a transition deal, jamming ports and requiring a hard border in Ireland, official government documents leaked to The Sunday Times show.
The Times said the forecasts compiled by the Cabinet Office set out the most likely aftershocks of a no-deal Brexit rather than the worst case scenarios.
They said up to 85 per cent of lorries using the main channel crossings “may not be ready” for French customs, meaning disruption at ports would potentially last up to three months before the flow of traffic improves.
The government also believes a hard border between the British province of Northern Ireland and the Republic would be likely as current plans to avoid widespread checks would prove unsustainable, The Times said.
“Compiled this month by the Cabinet Office under the code name Operation Yellowhammer, the dossier offers a rare glimpse into the covert planning being carried out by the government to avert a catastrophic collapse in the nation’s infrastructure,” The Times reported.