Businesses preparing for Brexit

Published: Feb. 19, 2019, 9:15 a.m.

Exporters express their fears and frustration at the lack of any agreement about future trade relations with just six weeks left to go until the UK leaves the EU. Adam Sopher of popcorn manufacturer Joe & Sephs tells Ed Butler how he is now having to send his wares to Asia via air freight, because by the time the usual ships reach dock in Hong Kong the UK will have left already and he still doesn't know what tariffs he will have to pay. Pauline Bastidon of the Freight Transport Association describes how British road hauliers are having to take part in a lottery for permits to continue operating in the EU, with many being left empty handed. Meanwhile in the Netherlands, MP Pieter Omtzigt, who acts as a Brexit point person for his country's parliament, explains how the Dutch have been preparing far longer than their British counterparts for the possibility of the UK crashing out of the EU with no trade deal at all. Plus Paul Hodges of the consultancy Ready for Brexit explains why so many of the small businesses he speaks to are far from being that. (Picture: Frustrated businessman tearing at his hair; Credit: djedzura/Getty Images)