Brexit preparation bill expected to cost £2bn by March 2019
The Independent
13/03/2018
-
E-commerce drives up Walmart's salesWalmart's quarterly comparable store sales rose more than expected, and the retailer raised out earnings outlook for the year. Fred Katayama reports.
Reuters
-
Business casts doubt over Brexit deal, financial services see hurdles aheadAs a stream of UK ministers resign and the political clamour around Brexit gets louder, top voices in business and the UK financial services industry have also been reacting negatively to the UK's proposed divorce deal with the EU. Laura Frykberg reports.
-
Cash runs out in Khartoum as Sudan faces economic crisisMany ATMs in the Sudanese capital Khartoum are empty as the country faces an acute liquidity crisis. David Doyle reports
-
E-commerce drives up Walmart's sales
Reuters 0:58 -
Business casts doubt over Brexit deal, financial services see hurdles ahead
Reuters 1:45 -
Cash runs out in Khartoum as Sudan faces economic crisis
Reuters 1:41 -
Europe shares reverse trade-related gains on Brexit turmoil, sterling plunges
Reuters 1:47 -
Beyoncé buys out clothing venture from UK's Philip Green
Reuters 1:03 -
Brexit battle begins as May faces resignations
Reuters 2:05 -
China sends written response to U.S. trade demands: sources
Reuters 1:20 -
Wall Street falls
Reuters 1:22
-
Snap reveals U.S. subpoenas on IPO disclosures
Reuters 1:12 -
Defiant Italy sets stage for budget showdown with EU
Reuters 1:47 -
Elon Musk faces clash with Mexican tequila industry
Reuters 0:53 -
Maersk warns trade war will hit container shipping
Reuters 1:42 -
Consumer prices jump to 9-month high
Reuters 0:46 -
Sterling slips; markets await Brexit deal decision
Reuters 1:10 -
Oil seeks floor, stocks tumble, sterling braces for wild swings
Reuters 1:36 -
Global economy: Germany, Japan contract as trade clouds outlook
Reuters 1:37
Brexit preparations have cost at least £400m in the current financial year, with the bill estimated to reach £2bn by Brexit day in March 2019, according to new research.
The report by the Institute for Government (IfG) into Whitehall spending claims that after strict controls on departmental budgets, Philip Hammond is “loosening his purse strings”.
Around half of the money will have been spent on staffing government departments, with the think-tank claiming that Brexit has reversed the staff reductions made in the civil service in the years before the EU referendum.
It comes after the Chancellor set aside £3bn in preparations for Britain’s withdrawal from the European Union last year to allow for “every possible outcome”. Around £1.5bn of this money has been set aside for the year after March 2019.
But the IfG claims the £400m spent this financial year by six Whitehall departments exceeds the Treasury’s allocation of £250m for 2017-18. The report adds this will jump to at least £900m in the next financial year with HMRC “playing a critical role” in preparing the border for Brexit.
The IfG's Brexit programme director Jill Rutter said: “We look only at costs incurred ahead of the UK's formal exit from the European Union. But the true scale of those costs will not be clear until the future relationship starts to take shape.
”Details still to be determined, like the UK's relationship with EU regulators or its access to EU-wide customs systems, will affect the scale of the task in Whitehall - and the size of bill for delivering it.“
Responding to the IFG report, a Government spokesman said: “The Government is committed to ensuring that the right skills and resources are available to deliver a successful Brexit that works for all parts of the country.
“The Chancellor has committed £3bn of funding over the next two years as government steps up preparations.”
“And we continue to review the capability of all departments and recruit the brightest and the best talent from the pubic and private sectors to unlock the benefits and opportunities of leaving the EU."
The Independent
