At one of the country's key transport hubs, the managers of Rosslare Europort have insisted that they are ready for Brexit - whenever and however it happens.

Work is almost complete according to RTE News, on a new border inspection post, located just outside the ferryport itself, which will be used if new checks need to be imposed on incoming freight traffic from the UK, which should eliminate any congestion which might otherwise have been caused post-Brexit.

The inspection area is being developed by the OPW on a 17-acre site which will include facilities for Department of Agriculture, Health, customs and revenue checks.

In the event of checks being deemed necessary after the United Kingdom leaves the EU, truck-drivers carrying freight from there into Ireland will be designated "red" or "green" before they arrive into Rosslare, depending on what they are carrying.

Green-designated trucks will leave the port area as normal, as they currently do, while red-designees will travel to the new inspection area where the checks will be performed, before carrying on their journey. 

About 120,000 trucks pass through Rosslare Europort every year, with about 90,000 of those coming from the UK.                                                                                       

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Speaking at the Agrifish Council in Luxembourg yesterday (Monday 14 October), Marine Minister Michael Creed welcomed the solidarity shown by EU member states and institutions regarding Brexit.

Highlighting the need for a swift response to help fishermen and farmers in the event of a hard Brexit, Minister Creed said: “I call on the Commission to be ready to deploy an exceptional aid regulation immediately in the event of a hard Brexit.”

During the Agrifish Council, which continues today (Tuesday 15 October), Minister Creed had constructive discussions with Commissioners Phil Hogan and Karmenu Vella regarding support measures in the event of a hard Brexit and the protection of Irish farming and fishery interests in EU trade negotiations.

With regard to fisheries, Minister Creed took the opportunity to discuss with fellow fisheries ministers the ongoing Brexit preparatory work by the eight EU member states most likely to be impacted.

Minister Creed said: “There has been a significant amount of preparatory work done at official and industry level across the member states and in co-operation with the Commission for all scenarios. The unity of purpose from our EU partners on fisheries, like all other issues, has been heartening.”

Separately, Ireland is also raising at this council the recent decision by Iceland and others to increase their unilateral quotas for mackerel, which threatens the long-term sustainability of Ireland’s single most important fishery.

The minister said: “The recent unilateral actions by Iceland, and later Russia and Greenland, are extremely regrettable and I will continue to work closely with the Commission on possible measures that can be taken in this regard.”

Operators in the ferry industry, reports BreakingNews.ie, have been accused of exploiting Ireland's vulnerability to Brexit to get the consumer rules they want.

In July, Irish Ferries, Stena Line and Brittany Ferries wrote to Taoiseach Leo Varadkar asking the government to intervene in a legal row over passengers compensation.

They claim they do not owe customers on cancelled ferries to France compensation because they can offer the option of using the "land-bridge' via Britain.

Labour's Transport spokesman Senator Kevin Humphreys said ferry operators should have the same responsibility to their customers as airlines.

Click here to read comments made by the Senator. 

It has been announced that Foyleport had a record £10 million in turnover despite the uncertainty posed by Brexit.

The Derry harbour, reports The Irish News, recorded an operating profit of £1.9m during 2018/19, marking its seventh year of consecutive growth.

The record turnover followed the port's handling of record levels of animal feed and fertiliser.

It means that all three of the north's ports have reported growth in the past year.

In June, Warrenpoint Port said its turnover rose by 5.5 per cent to £6.1m during 2018.

Further reading on the story can be found here. 

The Port of Cork CEO Brendan Keating has warned that investment in shipping infrastructure is key to offsetting the effects of Brexit in the southern region of the country.

As EchoLive reports, Mr Keating told the Construction Industry Federation Southern Construct conference that the Port, which had a €35.4 million turnover in 2018, will be hit by Brexit with decreased agricultural activity projected and a reduction of dry bulk goods being shipped and must adapt to new trends in international shipping.

“The region is highly dependent on international growth in the achievement of economic growth and highly dependent on international shipping,” Mr Keating said.

“We must continue to invest in port infrastructure,” he added.

For more click here from the newspaper.

In north Wales, town councillors in Holyhead, have urged the government to think again about letting Britain crash out of Europe with no deal.

Fearing the impact of a clean break from the European Union, NorthWalesLive writes, that members of Holyhead Town Council have passed a motion urging the Prime Minister to act in the interests of such ports and secure a deal with Brussels.

The Port of Holyhead is the second largest (ferry)port in the UK (after Dover), handling two million passengers, half a million vehicles and 450,000 freight units a year with the Swedish company employing hundreds of workers in North Wales.

During a recent visit to the port Michael Gove, the minister in charge of Government preparation for no-deal, said that ports are “geared up” for Brexit and should avoid any significant delays and congestion.

But Stena Line, which is the town’s largest employer, has described leaving with no-deal and no trade agreement as “the worst of all possible scenarios.”

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A doubling in the size of the customs building the Irish Examiner reports is planned by the Port of Cork at its Ringaskiddy terminal due to the increasing likelihood of a hard Brexit.

 “We have to plan for the worst now at this stage,” said Port of Cork chief executive Brendan Keating.

Already, a large number of HGVs from the North use ferry connections from Cork to get to Brittany in France and Santander in Spain. If a hard Brexit occurs, it is likely that increased HGV traffic will use the routes out of Cork.

The Port of Cork is investing €85m in developing expanded cargo-handling facilities at its deepwater terminal Ringaskiddy. It has successfully applied to Bord Pleanála to increase the size of a previously permitted customs’ inspection building at Ringaskiddy from 324sq m to 648sq m, primarily in light of the uncertainty over Brexit.

“We have to have the capability to put the necessary checks in place,” Mr Keating said, adding that, if a hard Brexit occurs, there is likely to be more demand for freight and cargo to transit via Dublin and Rosslare ports as well.

The newspaper has more here

The WexfordPeople writes, following his visit to Wexford to officially open the M11 Gorey to Enniscorthy bypass, pictures were circulated of a smiling Taoiseach Leo Varadkar meeting with representatives at Rosslare Europort.

Having shed his tie after a long day, there were smiles nonetheless as he was shown around the Port which he's publicly stated as being key to post-Brexit Ireland.

However, decades of neglect means getting things up to code is a mammoth task, particularly with a Brexit deadline of October looming large. With a €320million expansion plan being outlined for Dublin Port, critics have accused the government of merely paying lip-service to Rosslare and are not holding out too much hope that it will get the shot in the arm it needs.

General Manager at the port Glenn Carr, however, remains firm that Brexit should represent an opportunity for Rosslare.

More on the story can be read through this link.

The port authority in Holyhead, Stena Line says free port status for the town could bring "immediate opportunities" but also had a message for UK Government.

The ferry giant according to NorthWalesLive, was commenting after Boris Johnson's Government unveiled plans for 10 free ports across the UK after Brexit.

They allow firms to import goods and then re-export them outside of normal tax and customs rules.

While Stena said free port status could bring benefits, their message to the UK Government was that reaching a deal with the EU remains the "best possible solution".

Ian Hampton, Stena Line Brexit spokesperson, said: "Holyhead is the second largest roro port in the UK and the largest port facility owned by the Stena Line Group, so naturally the Company is currently seeking further clarification from the UK Government on all the proposals that are being issued to help ensure the prosperity of the UK in a post-Brexit era.

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Almost €8 million, The Irish Times reports, has been spent by the State buying land and developing properties at Dublin Port, Dublin airport and Rosslare Europort for border checks post-Brexit.

Paschal Donohoe the Minister for Public Expenditure and Reform said the Office of Public Works (OPW) has spent €7.8 million to date on acquiring and developing physical infrastructure for use at the two ports and the airport.

The Minister revealed the spending on infrastructure for a no-deal Brexit in response to a parliamentary question tabled by Fianna Fáil’s finance spokesman Michael McGrath.

The State has taken control of a 13,000sq m warehouse at Dublin Port previously owned by businessman Harry Crosbie, and purchased 16 acres outside Rosslare port that was owned by car dealer Bill Cullen.

Both men lost control of the properties in the financial crash. Mr Donohoe did not provide a breakdown of the State’s spending on the individual properties.

The State fast-tracked the takeover of the former Crosbie warehouse and the Rosslare property for inspections of goods and containers should the UK leave the EU without a deal on March 31st. The Brexit date has since been extended until October 31st.

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