Simon Taylor, a wine merchant and owner of Stone, Vine & Sun, has been unable to stockpile wine before the end of the year due to a shortage of hauliers, as many firms had the same idea. He had planned to bring in wine from Spain and Italy to guard against potential price rises after the UK stops trading under EU rules on 31 December.
“I basically can’t get the wine out of Spain or Italy before the shutters come down on 31 December,” Mr Taylor said. He expects wine prices to rise even if a trade deal is reached, citing a UK import levy of 7-13 pence per bottle and an administrative charge from suppliers of 6-8p per bottle.
Wine chain Majestic has stockpiled two million more bottles than this time last year. Talks on a UK-EU trade deal remain deadlocked, with Prime Minister Boris Johnson saying there is a “strong possibility” of no deal.
Regardless of a deal, a House of Lords committee has warned of “significant disruption” at ports. Baroness Verma, chair of the EU goods sub-committee, said the government has not prepared enough for moving goods across the Channel, describing contingency plans as “weak and undeveloped”.
Meanwhile, delays at deep sea ports Felixstowe and Southampton, caused by global shipping disruptions from the coronavirus crisis, are affecting businesses. Honda has temporarily halted production at its Swindon plant due to port delays. Maersk senior vice president Mikael Jensen said delays could last until May 2021.
