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  I consider myself to be a thinking Brexiter. That’s why I (after much heart-searching) agreed to go to Switzerland with a BBC documentary film crew to actually find out what life outside the customs union would be.
  I was totally amazed to find out:
  1. The basic procedures for import/export of goods have not changed since 1972 when I worked in import and export bills departments in a UK bank. Believe it or not it’s still totally paper-based and everything has to be physically archived for at least 6 years. Cloud or hard disc storage alone is not allowed.
  2. There is a massive gap between the number of qualified customs brokers in the UK and the number required after exiting the Customs Union. It takes years to train one up. In the office we visited in Basel every member of staff bar the receptionist is a graduate. Many of them are law graduates. Why? Because of the attention to detail required and the consequences of getting something wrong. And between their 25 staff they can speak every European language plus a few others besides.
  3. There is a massive difference between the Single Market and the Customs Union in terms of moving physical goods across borders.

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