Transition time

Brexit: remember that? It was not long ago that this particularly polarising issue dominated UK society and nothing could possibly supplant it. How times change.

But with the UK having left the European Union on 31 January this year, and the transition period coming to an end on 31 December, you might recently have noticed the UK government ramping up its ‘Check, change, go’ awareness campaign to help individuals and businesses make the necessary preparations. The only problem is, at the time of writing in late October, there still remains much to be clarified – most notably what kind of trade deal the UK secures.

As The Guardian recently reported, there’s a sense among some European ministers and officials that Prime Minister Boris Johnson is stalling for time and will make a judgement following the result of the US election. Former UK representative to Brussels Ivan Rogers believes Johnson will go ahead with a no-deal approach should Donald Trump triumph over Joe Biden in the belief that a significant trade deal with the US could be struck should the incumbent president retain his position.

Thus, when addressing the ABTA Travel Convention in mid-October, secretary of state for transport Grant Shapps could only offer an insight as to what might occur: “For road and aviation both sides [the UK and EU] are in broad agreement that operators from the UK and EU should have rights to provide services between the UK and EU and that will be the basis of agreement.

“Of course it’s critical that flights between the UK and the EU can continue to operate as normal at the end of the transition period regardless of the outcome of these negotiations and that’s why we expect the EU to bring forward contingency measures as they’ve done so before to ensure flights will continue if negotiations are unsuccessful [and] of course we would look to reciprocate that.”

In the meantime, there are mixed visions of what might unfold at the UK’s airports and ports on 1 January 2021. Although few dramatic changes to international travel regulations are expected, changes to passport requirements might catch a few people out (see panel, p42) and corporates should also keep track of entry requirements for each EU member nation.

“Visa-free travel is expected to continue for specific activities such as meetings with clients, customers and colleagues and, when the pandemic subsides, for attending conferences and exhibitions relating to trade and industry,” says Nick Parkinson, an associate at Travlaw, a specialist law firm for the travel industry.

He continues: “Even where a visa is not required, the traveller will need to consider what other documents may be required and also be prepared for a ‘gentle interrogation’ at the border. Passport expiry dates, proof of accommodation, purpose of visit and proof of finances all need to be considered.”

For many UK companies, the planning for Brexit started several years ago and has more recently been placed on hold following the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic. One of the biggest concerns has been ensuring employees from EU member nations have secured their right to stay and work in the UK. Travel has not been a major feature of these conversations.

“We have a Brexit taskforce but it hasn’t really looked at business travel at all,” says one travel manager. Another travel buyer adds: “We have had a dedicated immigration team working for over two years supporting our staff to ensure any requirements post-Brexit are met and all costs are covered by the company. Beyond that we are monitoring government advice and we will pivot accordingly.”

Ana Gibson, travel manager at Hilti, is not alone among corporates in that, for her company, “Covid has just taken over everything and travel-related preparations have been put on the backburner a bit.”

The company has many European nationals working in the UK and some UK citizens on secondments in Europe. It has a Brexit taskforce in place and a Brexit hub – a dedicated area on its intranet providing relevant information around Brexit to its employees.

In normal circumstances, the company’s key routes from the UK include Manchester to Germany and Austria (for onward travel to its head office in Lichtenstein) and also to Sweden, Denmark, Finland and Ireland.

Gibson says: “We’re ordering in extra stock from overseas – although that doesn’t affect travel – as it looks like we’re heading for a hard Brexit but we don’t really know what that entails at the moment.”

She says conversations with her TMC about Brexit have not occurred in recent months because “they know we’ve barely been travelling so it doesn’t matter too much at the moment. It’s not a key thing on my desk, but if I was looking for assistance they’d help.”

Gibson adds: “Because we’re not doing much [travel] at the moment it’s taken the pressure off, plus there’s very little information out there right now. We don’t expect travel to really start until next year once we’re all office-based again.”

With Covid-19 continuing to stifle demand for travel the impact of Brexit at ports and airports on 1 January – if any – will at least be lessened.

“No one thought Brexit would be a welcome change of subject,” says Abby Penston, chief executive of the Focus Travel Partnership. “It’s definitely been overshadowed by Covid, but it’s coming back now and unfortunately the two things marry together in that they’re both barriers to travel.”