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New Year, new rules for UK

Brexit becomes reality as UK quits EU single market

Published : Saturday, 2 January, 2021 at 12:00 AM  Count : 486

People stand on the beach as a P&O ferry arrives at the Port of Dover, southeast England on January 1. Britain's trading gateway to the European Union, the first ferry sailings of the post-Brexit era left for northern France without delay or drama.	photo : AFP

People stand on the beach as a P&O ferry arrives at the Port of Dover, southeast England on January 1. Britain's trading gateway to the European Union, the first ferry sailings of the post-Brexit era left for northern France without delay or drama. photo : AFP

LONDON, Jan 1: Britain on Friday began a new year and life outside the European Union after leaving the bloc's single market, with the first trucks crossing the Channel by ferry and rail reporting largely plain sailing despite new customs rules.
Brexit, which has dominated politics on both sides of the Channel since 2016, became reality an hour before midnight, ending the United Kingdom's 48-year obligation to follow Brussels' rules.
Free movement of over 500 million people between Britain and the 27 EU states ended.
More rigorous customs checks returned for the first time in decades, despite the hard-fought brokering of a tariff- and quota-free trade deal. But the approach to key port Dover, where ferries to and from northern France dock, was quiet as dawn broke.
"It's good to see the port's done its job and there's no backlog," said Alan Leigh, 52, of nearby Folkestone, taking an early morning stroll on the cliffs above Dover's docks.
Scores of heavy goods vehicles also passed through the Channel Tunnel connecting Britain and France by train "without any problem" early Friday, its operator said.
However, the British government, which is implementing a phased introduction of checks, expects next week to be the true test, once the quiet holiday period is over. New Year's Day newspapers reflected the historic but still deeply divisive change, which will have repercussions for generations to come.
The front-page photograph on the pro-Brexit Daily Express showed the White Cliffs of Dover -- an enduring symbol of Britishness -- with "Freedom" written on a Union flag.
"Our Future. Our Britain. Our Destiny," said the headline.
The pro-EU Independent was less sure: "Off the hook -- or cut adrift?" it asked, reflecting widespread uncertainty at the path the country had now chosen.
Whether the United Kingdom will even stay united was also exercising minds as the pro-EU Scottish National Party steps up calls for a second referendum on independence.
"It's a very sad day. Brexit puts a barrier in between my ability to be Scottish and my ability to be British," retiree Bruce Borthwick told AFP in Edinburgh.
The Road Haulage Association, an industry body, estimates that some 220 million forms will now need to be filled in every year to comply with the new rules for transporting goods to and from mainland Europe, including permits to even drive on the roads leading to ports like Dover.
Ferry group Stena Line tweeted on Friday that six freight loads bound for EU member Ireland were turned away at Holyhead port in north Wales for not having the correct paperwork.    -AFP









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