Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask His Majesty's Government what progress they have made in March in simplifying trade procedures between Great Britain and Northern Ireland, to minimise disruption for businesses.

The Government is committed to ensuring smooth trade flows within the UK internal market.

The UK Internal Market Scheme (UKIMS) replaced the previous UK Trader Scheme on 30 September 2023, allowing a much wider range of businesses to move goods into Northern Ireland under the existing ‘not at risk’ arrangements, with over 3,000 new businesses now authorised.

From 30 September 2024, UKIMS traders will also be able to benefit from the new simplified processes for UK internal market movements which will scrap burdensome supplementary declarations and allow for the use of a simpler dataset based on standard commercial information as opposed to full customs declarations as is required currently.

There is also tailored support available for businesses trading between Great Britain and Northern Ireland via the free-to-use Trader Support Service (TSS).