British municipalities before the Brexit: "accept the worst"

United Kingdom and Gibraltar European Union membership referendum

all articles

Actually, the requirements sound banal. "People want someone to keep their streets clean, green and safe," says Graeme Miller, community council chairman in Sunderland, a coastal community in northeastern England. "Potholes must be filled up, street lamps must work, children should go to good schools, and garbage cans for dog dung must be emptied."

But since the majority of the British voted in favor of Brexit in June 2016, the country's communities have very different concerns: they need to prepare for the time. Although the No Deal is temporarily averted by the postponement of the Brexit date, the consequences of leaving the EU remain unpredictable.

First the Brexit, then the worries

In Sunderland, 61 percent of the approximately 275,000 inhabitants voted in favor of Brexit, and it is here that concern is particularly high. The factory of Japanese carmaker Nissan has 7,000 employees whose jobs depend on finely tuned supply chains. If parts from Europe arrive late, the production is upside down. In the event of a withdrawal without agreement, a manufacturing process according to current standards would not be feasible - and even with agreements, many well-established processes could not be maintained.

Not only for the manufacturing industry, actually for all areas of life should be provided for. This was revealed by the "Yellowhammer" report published a few months ago, in which the government revealed the state of its preparations for an unregulated Brexit. According to the BBC, local councils are already hoarding food for school canteens, providing bicycles for nurses, who could use them to dodge the streets in case of excessive congestion in order to get to work. They take care of the supply of fuel and clarify the work and residence status of EU foreigners.

In the planning, the communities are particularly the uncertainty to create - the ever new shift in the date of withdrawal, sometimes more, sometimes less acute risk of unregulated Brexit. Plans that were once made for the dates of March 29 and October 31 must now be revised for the third time in view of January 31, 2020.

Phil Noble / REUTERS

The Nissan production in Sunderland relies on parts from Europe

Workers, for example, who have stopped the municipalities to cope with Brexit and who would be dismissed from the EU in the event of a proper resignation, remain on the payroll for the time being - because preparations are continuing until Brexit is completed. The influence of the districts is limited, says Miller: "Communities are part of the political structure, but we are not the decision-makers who sit in parliament."

Who is paying?

To limit the possible damage, the communities need money. Sunderland has rented an area for around £ 30,000 to set up a no-deal car park, the BBC reported. Lorries could wait here on their way to and from the harbor if there were any delays, at least they would not be able to block the roads. City Council Miller is trying to make the most of the situation. "We are as well prepared as we can be under these circumstances," he says. "But if we had more money, we could do more."

Frank Augstein / AP

Cranes in the harbor of Sunderland: One euro per inhabitant from the government's Brexit pot

However, municipalities can hardly handle the costs needed to tackle larger infrastructure projects. In addition, they received 77 million pounds from the government's Brexit budget. The funds were distributed among the 408 principal authorities , ie organized municipalities, districts and districts, according to size. For 2018-2020, Sunderland received 210,000 pounds, less than a pound per capita. "Accept the worst, prepare for the worst, plan as well as possible - and if nothing happens, be happy," says local politician Miller, forced to pragmatism.

Gareth Fuller / DPA

Brexit simulation "Operation Brock": truck maneuver in Ashford, Kent

Most of the money currently goes to where the risk of Brexit effects is greatest. After Kent, on the south coast of England, where the port of Dover is located, one of the most important transhipment points for goods from the EU. Here is to be prevented with a financial injection of 29 million pounds, a huge traffic jam, caused by delayed truck clearances. In the course of the so-called Operation Brock, roads were repaired here and a decommissioned airport converted into a truck waiting area.

In January there was also an exercise in case of emergency. Volunteers parked their trucks on the former runway to simulate a no-deal. Since then, the Brexit parking lot is empty.