Worth recapping what all these no-deal contingency notices have shown:
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For me, three key takeaways from these
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Firstly, they've highlighted how wide-ranging EU membership has become. Not really any area of public policy that isn't affected in some way by it, and thus by Brexit
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That's important because too often debate focuses now on trade barriers/customs or the party politics: there's much else that needs attention
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Secondly, the notices highlight the scale of disruption that no-deal would involve
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That's linked to the scope, but also to the depth of the uncertainty. Many of the notices express hopes about contingency action at level of policy-makers, but much will also hang on actions of regulators, economic operators and citizens
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And thirdly, notices demonstrate the severe limitations in how prepared UK actually is for no-deal
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Anyone looking for certainty of what'll happen, or how problems'll be overcome, will not find it in these notices.
That might be intentional, but it's also an accurate reflection of where Whitehall has got to on this
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That might be intentional, but it's also an accurate reflection of where Whitehall has got to on this
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Remember that no-deal is the default and all sides should have viable plans ready to go on this. Also that you can't do most of the necessary work overnight on 29/3/2019
If you're serious in your no-deal contingency work, you need to be well beyond these notices
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If you're serious in your no-deal contingency work, you need to be well beyond these notices
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In short, another reason one might hope for a deal on the Withdrawal Agt
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