Brexit: Channel Islands supermarket 'preparing' for disruption

Potential disruption to supplies were likely to be similar to "bad weather" impacts , Co-Op CEO Mark Cox said

The Channel Islands Co-Operative Society is building up "safety stock" should the UK leave the European Union with no deal, it has been confirmed.

UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson has warned there is a "strong possibility" no deal will be struck.

Co-Op CEO Mark Cox said any disruption was likely to be similar to "bad weather" delays to ferries.

He added any issues would be short term and islanders would "notice very little difference" from a supply perspective.

Negotiations between the UK and EU are continuing, but any agreement would need to be finalised before the UK's Brexit transition ends on 31 December.

Co-op CEO Mark Cox pictured in shop before masks were made mandatory in Jersey due to Covid-19

Mr Cox explained the islands' governments had indicated freight would be "green lighted", while Condor Ferries had confirmed their ability to operate from Poole or Southampton, should there be disruption at Portsmouth.

As a result, any issues were likely to be "in effect the same as disruption due to bad weather" delaying sailings, Mr Cox said.

However, he argued there was a risk of price rises for goods should there be no deal.

Mr Cox said the impact of tariffs being introduced on goods imported to the UK, which then make their way on to the islands, would contribute to this.

He added the possibility of a fall in the value of the pound as a result of a no deal meant the supermarket's purchasing power with suppliers could also force increases.

'Considerable planning undertaken'

Sandpiper Channel Islands confirmed they had been working with Guernsey's and Jersey's governments for more than a year.

A spokesman said: "Considerable planning has already been undertaken and all elements of the supply chain are as ready as they can be without knowing the specific details of any potential deal or no deal."

Mr Cox also explained the Co-Op had "taken comfort" from how they were able to deal with the disruption caused by the "surge and panic buying" in the early weeks of the Covid-19 pandemic.

He said: "It gives us a lot of confidence that heading into the uncertainty around Brexit that the supply chain will cope."

In guidance issued to businesses about the end of the Brexit transition period, the States of Guernsey confirmed freight bound for the Channel Islands will be "prioritised" by the UK port authorities in Portsmouth.

A Government of Jersey Brexit report from December 2019 confirmed the agreement and said there were plans in place to keep the port "as clear as possible", as well as a contingency strategy should the port become unusable.