Johnson: Lots of Brexit teething problems, but fishing will gain

“Of course there are there are teething problems in lots of areas and that’s inevitable because this is a big change,” Johnson said during a visit to Scotland on Thursday (28 January).

“But be in no doubt, over the medium term and much more over the long term, the changes are very, very beneficial for Scottish fishing,” he said, adding that eventually Britain would be able to fish all the stocks in its territorial waters.

Scotland’s fishing industry has been hit hard by delays in getting their shellfish and other fresh produce to markets in the EU since the introduction of post-Brexit checks.

Britain’s government has promised an extra 23 million pounds ($31.6 million) of funding to compensate the sector.

But other industries have also felt the impact of longer delivery times and tax changes.

The government said on Thursday that businesses overall had adapted well to the new trading relationship that began on 1 January with border traffic increasing daily and no longer any disruption at British ports.

On Tuesday (26 January), real-time truck movement data from Sixfold showed freight volumes moving between the United Kingdom and the European Union were down 38% in the third week of January compared with the same week a year ago.

Nevertheless, the government said the level of compliance was very high with vehicles turned back at the border - for failing to meet customs requirements or lack of a negative COVID test - accounting for less than 5% of total traffic.

Michael Gove, a senior minister in Johnson’s cabinet, said the government would “work hand in hand” with businesses to tackle any outstanding issues. He issued the statement shortly before meeting business leaders to discuss the impact of Brexit.

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