French customs to hire hundreds of extra staff to cope with #Brexit

France will hire an extra 95 customs officers this year in a fast-track procedure to cope with the consequences of Brexit on its borders, officials have said, bringing to 250 the number of additional British-focused staff recruited in 2018, writes Michel Rose.

In a sign that European countries are now taking concrete steps to deal with a possible return to customs checks on British trade, French customs have already advertised the new positions on their website.

The deadline to apply for some 35 clearance officer jobs at Charles de Gaulle airport outside Paris is Feb. 23, showing how pressing the need for new staff may be as the clock ticks towards Britain’s March 2019 departure date.

Rodolphe Gintz, the head of French customs, said the staffing would be recruited under a special fast-track process.

Some 250 new customs officers will be hired this year to deal with Brexit, including by competitive exam as is traditional, with more expected next year, Gintz told Reuters.

At the moment Britain has no customs border with the EU, a free-trade area of 28 states, but one is likely to be reimposed when it leaves the bloc.

Britain says it is seeking the freest possible trade with the EU after Brexit and has outlined potential customs regimes, but detailed negotiations on these have yet to begin.

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