Question reference: S5W-34078
- Asked by: Colin Smyth, MSP for South Scotland, Scottish Labour
- Date lodged: 16 December 2020
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Current status: Answered by Michael Matheson on 13 January 2021
Question
To ask the Scottish Government what contingency plans have been put in place to carry out checks on vehicles transporting goods between Northern Ireland and Scotland via Cairnryan Ferry port, including (a) the preferred location of any lorry parks for such checks, (b) whether additional work will be required to make the location of the lorry park accessible, (c) whether planning permission will be needed for any such work, (d) when such a lorry park will be ready for use and (e) what the estimated cost will be of bringing the location of the lorry park up to a usable standard and for its ongoing use.
Answer
The Scottish Government is in discussions with the UK government regarding the requirements for border controls on goods moving between Northern Ireland and Great Britain that do not meet the criteria for unfettered access granted to qualifying Northern Ireland goods under the terms of the Northern Ireland Protocol. It is the Scottish Government’s view that non-qualifying goods should be subject to the same entry requirements as EU / Rest of the World goods entering Great Britain at other ports, and we are considering the options for the approach to matters that fall within devolved competence for the routes into Cairnryan. A Scottish Government procurement process is underway for technical advice on the options for infrastructure at Cairnryan to enforce devolved sanitary and phyto-sanitary checks on animals, plants and food products after July 2021.