Statement by TUV Ballymena councillor Matthew Armstrong:
“After years of downplaying the dangers to Northern Ireland’s economy posed by a border in the Irish Sea the cold reality is beginning to bite just hours after it became operational. I know of one trailer of foodstuffs which was pulled at the border after arriving on the 7:30pm ferry on Saturday which was not released until 4pm this afternoon. Drivers have been sitting around for protected periods while goods are checked. All this at a point where Great Britain hasn’t even had a chance to diverge from EU rules. As the rest of the UK takes advantage of the freedoms of Brexit the border will only harden.
“The cold reality even at this early stage is that consumers will find the cost of these delays passed on to them in the price of products. Many small companies will struggle to absorb the cost and I have no doubt that there will be countless businesses who conclude that trading with Northern Ireland simply isn’t worth the hassle.
“Those who warned that there was no such thing as the “best of both worlds” have been proved correct. Those who baulked at the very suggestion of a camera at the land border between the United Kingdom and the Republic of Ireland have to face up to the reality of what they have created. Having seen the border in operation I am astounded that there are politicians of any hue who believe that there are opportunities in the midst of this.”