Question to the Department for Exiting the European Union :

To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, whether UK withdrawal from the EU customs union would result in a requirement for every shipping container to be inspected at its port of entry into the UK.

The Prime Minister has been clear that the current Customs Union arrangement with the EU would prevent us from negotiating our own comprehensive free trade agreements. But she was also clear that we want a customs agreement with the EU. ​

No final decisions about the UK's future customs arrangements with the EU has yet been taken. There are a number of aspects to this and our aim is to get the best possible deal in the negotiation. However, even where we currently apply customs requirements on trade with the rest of the world, it is not the case that every shipping container needs to be inspected at its port of entry into the UK.