U.K. to spend over $170M on ferries to cope with no-deal Brexit

The British government will spendmore than 100 million pounds ($170 million Cdn) chartering extra seaferries to ease cross-Channel congestion if the United Kingdomfails to secure a trade deal before leaving the European Unionnext year.

Just three months before the United Kingdom is due to leavethe world's largest bloc, the risk of a no-deal Brexit is risingthe nightmare scenario for many businesses, which are nowplanning for an economic shock.

Extra ships will be needed to work new routes across theChannel in the event that the main French terminal of Calais andBritain's Dover and Folkestone are clogged up by customs checks.

Currently, Britain's membership of the EU means that trucksdrive smoothly through border checks within the bloc. But in ano-deal Brexit, even a few minutes' delay at customs for eachtruck would be likely to mean vehicles backing up at ports andqueuing on feeder roads on both sides of the Channel.

To ease a potential backlog, the government has awardedthree contracts to provide additional freight capacity on routesfrom English south-coast ports including Poole, Portsmouth andPlymouth.

They comprise one worth 47 million pounds with the Frenchfirm Brittany Ferries, a 47-million pound deal with the Danishshipping company DFDS and a 14-million pound contract withSeaborne Freight.

The leader of the opposition Liberal Democrat party, VinceCable, called the move "complete madness" and said public moneywas being spent recklessly in a last-minute bid to prepare for ano-deal outcome.

The contracts were not put out to tender. The Department forTransport said it was responding to a "situation of extremeurgency" brought about by "unforeseeable events."

About 16,000 trucks pass between Dover and Calais every day,transporting everything from perishable food to medicines andthe industrial goods needed to keep factories running.

"This extra capacity is a small but important element of theDfT's no-deal planning," the Department for Transport said in astatement. "While remaining committed to working to ensure adeal is reached, the department is helping ensure the rest ofgovernment are fully prepared for a range of scenarios."

Earlier this month, the government announced that allgovernment departments must step up planning for a no-dealBrexit, including putting 3,500 armed forces personnel onstandby to deal with any disruption.