Business group reviews impact of Treaty arrangements on trade

The Business Transition Advisory Group has reviewed trading conditions and the movement of goods almost four months after the provisional application of the UK-EU Treaty on Gibraltar.

The Minister for Health, Care and Business, Gemma Arias Vasquez, and the Attorney General, Michael Llamas, co-chaired the meeting, which brought together senior officials from HM Customs and across the Gibraltar Government with representatives of the business community.

Members shared their experience of trading conditions and the movement of goods.

The discussion covered customs procedures on both sides of the frontier, pressures on costs and cash flow and the support measures available to businesses.

HM Customs updated the group on a task force, supported by IT technicians, which will provide training and outreach for officers, customs clearing agents and traders.

It will also prepare additional guidance aimed at helping suppliers understand procedures for delivering goods to Gibraltar through Spain.

Work is continuing on technological solutions intended to reduce duplication for businesses, including the transfer of customs data between systems.

The Gibraltar Government said it would meet customs clearing agents again in the coming days, consider the points raised by members and continue engaging with the group as the new arrangements develop.

Ms Arias Vasquez said: “Almost four months on from provisional application, it was important to hear, once again, directly from businesses on how the new arrangements are working in practice. I am grateful to the Attorney General for co-chairing the meeting and to members for their openness.”

“Real progress has been made since July. Goods are moving, procedures are improving and HM Customs and traders are working closely together to resolve the issues that remain. HM Customs is strengthening its support for traders and we will continue to work with the business community on practical solutions, so that these arrangements work well for businesses across Gibraltar.”

“Separately, we have heard the messages from traders on support schemes and we are collecting data from the first three months of collections of transaction tax to see how we can assist businesses.”