THREAD: No deal papers- we've looked through so you don't have to. This is what a no-Deal Britain might look like (caution this might take a while):
1) Britian would be more bureaucratic. The papers are replete with new regulatory regimes, doubling up of registration and extra processes for British business and consumers. This for example would be the new hurdles for UK importers/exporters to the EU. Currently there are none. 
2.) In fact the government is advising businesses that they might want to employ customs brokers and customs warehousing to navigate the extra bureaucracy. Might be possible for big business- small biz will find much more onerous.
3.) Lots of examples where businesses will have to submit the same information (or extra information) to separate regulatory regimes where now there is only one. I.e. for medical products.
4.) warnings over lag times: e.g. organic farmers would lose their access to EU markets on Brexit day as they wouldn't be certified as organic traders. They'd have to wait a minimum of 9 months to apply for a new certificate which would allow them to resume trading.
5.) Recognition that Britain would have establish and have in operation lots of new regulatory bodies ready to go on Brexit day- e.g. this on pediatric medicines Seems a tall order considering we have just over 200 days to go.
6.) In area after area, the government is saying that it would continue to accept EU products/regulatory requirements to make trade and business easier, e.g. here on medical devices. Implicit assumption and invitation is for the EU to do the same. Big hope/gamble.
7.) Extra bureaucracy won't just for expensive goods. Confirmation that Value Consignment Relief will not be extended to goods being brought from EU. I.e. all parcels brought into the UK from the EU under the value of £135 would be subject to VAT. Will be passed on to consumers.
8.) It's clear from these documents that there is no real idea about how no deal could function for Northern Ireland. Each section ends with this proverbial shrug of the shoulders. Essentially- 'let's hope it doesn't happen.'
9.) Some of the details are extraordinary. For example- this section on Danish imported sperm for donation. Turns out, in the event of no deal, we might have to start producing more of our own. Come on boys, do it for Britain.
10.) One area where the government seems very happy to continue to follow EU rules even with no deal is on state aid. Exactly the area Labour most wants to diverge. Funny that.
11.) On banking and financial services (huge slice of the economy), the government would have to create a whole array of new arrangements for very complicated financial mechanisms from scratch. Not clear much work has been done on this so far.
12.) For businesses and consumers, card payment costs would increase.
13.) The City had been thought to be an area relatively resilient to the impact of no deal, with lots of preparations in place to mitigate its effects. Officials appear to disagree, with no deal affecting the ability of the City to keep trading as it has in all manner of areas.
13.) If you export products to the EU, either in a finished state or as part of a supply chain, you better get familiar with v long commodity codes and thick product catalogues. Easy as pie, I'm sure (pie will also have a commodity code- actually several, for every type of pie).
14) essentially no deal would mean no deal for a while followed by a series of piecemeal deals further down the line. Long term, having a looser economic relationship with the EU than Iceland, Canada, S Korea serves neither side.But time it takes to get there would be v damaging.
15) I’ve banged on about this before but once again these docs illustrate an essential brexit truth- if the EU was as powerful and mighty and influential over Britain as the brexiter case claimed it was never going to be easy to leave.
16) remember too this is ONLY A THIRD of the Brexit no deal docs. Many more to come. If these are anything to go by, they won’t be pretty. 218 days to go. Over and out.
