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HM Treasury and HM Revenue & Customs (HMRC) has made £8m available to any company that can automate the customs configurations needed in response to Brexit. It is hoped that this investment, which was made available in December 2018, will prepare the UK for leaving the European Union (EU) on 29 March 2019. The logic is that any customs intermediaries and traders who complete, or intend to complete, customs declarations can apply for funding for training and IT. The government has said customs intermediaries face an uphill challenge to support existing clients when Britain leaves the EU. Given that traders are being urged to address new markets outside the EU, their customs clearance work will get even harder. Traders will need all the systems, training and support they can get. The government has put forward an £8m plan to help pay for the investment, and HMRC claimed it is had engaged extensively with industry bodies and customs broker services. The government said it has consulted with the nation’s leading freight forwarders, ...