LONDON (Reuters) – Britain urges businesses and individuals to prepare for the end of the Dec. 31 Brexit transition period with an information campaign titled: “The UK’s New Beginning: Let’s Move Forward.”
FILE PHOTO: The EU flag is placed on broken glass and the British flag in this illustrated image taken on January 31, 2020. REUTERS / Dado Ruvic
Britain left the European Union on January 31, three and a half years after a referendum, but a transition period has delayed any major change in the relationship.
The two sides have been working to agree on a trade deal before that period expires at the end of the year.
Cabinet Minister Michael Gove said Sunday progress was being made in the talks, but there were still divisions.
“Later this year, we will leave the single market and the Customs Union, regardless of the type of agreement we reach with the EU,” he said. “This will bring significant changes and opportunities for which all of us must prepare.”
The information campaign will launch on Monday, the government said, with ads appearing on television, radio, billboards and online.
A survey by the Institute of Directors (IoD) lobby group said that only a quarter of companies were fully ready by the end of the transition period.
Almost half of the 978 company directors surveyed at the end of June said they couldn’t prepare at this time, with one in seven distracted by the coronavirus and nearly a third saying they needed details of the changes to be clear, the report said. IoD.
“With so much progress, many principals feel that preparing for Brexit is like trying to achieve a moving goal,” said IoD CEO Jonathan Geldart. “Jumping immediately to what comes next would be a nightmare for many companies.”
The campaign is aimed at Britons who intend to travel to the EU from 1 January, importers and exporters, UK citizens abroad and the EU, the European Economic Area and Swiss citizens living in Britain.
Report by Paul Sandle; Editing by Andrew Cawthorne
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