£16m boost to fund more customs experts

The government has allocated an extra £16m funding for businesses to train staff in making customs declarations and to help entities that support others to trade goods to invest in IT.

Organisations based in or with a branch in the UK can apply for funding ahead of the UK leaving the EU. The grants can be used to support training costs for businesses that complete customs declarations or intend to in the future. They can also be used by small and medium-sized employers that are involved in trade as an intermediary to pay for IT improvement. 

The customs intermediaries market consists of third-party firms that facilitate the import and export process helping businesses to move goods and to comply with customs formalities. The funding is intended to increase the capacity of the sector as businesses trading with the EU consider whether to use an expert to complete...