Question to the Department for Exiting the European Union :

To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, what steps his Department is taking to (a) employ and train customs officials and (b) establish customs control posts and additional capacity in the event that the UK leaves the EU without a deal.

HMRC and Border Force are responsible for the UK’s customs arrangements.

HMRC are considering the capacity and capability requirements for future customs arrangements as part of their EU exit planning. This will be kept under review as negotiations progress.

The future customs controls required following EU Exit will depend on the outcome of the negotiations. All options are being considered. In the unlikely event that an agreement with the EU is not reached, the Government will work to ensure that trade between the UK and the EU is as frictionless as possible.