The no-deal Brexit chaos feared by towns throughout Britain has been laid bare in a fresh cache of documents.

Risk assessment documents revealed by 63 town halls reveal councils expect traffic chaos, water shortages and rubbish piling up in the streets within days if Britain leaves the EU without a deal. 

More than two-thirds of the councils (68%) believe there is a risk of food shortages, with food banks and school lunches listed as a particular concern. 

More than half said there was a risk to supplies of medicine (52%) and fuel (59%). 

And nearly two-thirds (65%) feared public disorder and a rise in hate crime. 

Deep job losses were a concern for more than three quarters of the councils who responded. 

And a number of local authorities further cuts in local services as a result of a sharp decline in revenues. 

The documents were released to the People’s Vote campaign under Freedom of Information laws.

 Jacqui Smith, former Home Secretary and leading supporter of the People’s Vote campaign, said: “The concerns identified here are not hyperbole from politicians or exaggeration by journalists. 

"They are the sober assessment of public officials dedicated to the provision of key services from housing to traffic to social care to waste management. 

"This is not ‘Project Fear’ so much as ‘Project Here’ because the impact on council services will negatively affect millions of people’s lives in countless different ways.” 

She added: “ Boris Johnson and his Government are still insisting they will inflict the disaster of No Deal on the country no matter what.

“No matter the harm it would do to millions of people, no matter the new law saying No Deal must be prevented, no matter their duty to the well-being of the country as the Government of the day. 

“And No Deal would only be the beginning of the Brexit crisis – it would mean years more negotiations and wrangling and political arguments, with no end in sight.”

1) Backlog of dead bodies

One council – Gwynedd – even warned there could be a backlog of disposing of dead bodies because it may be impossible to obtain spare parts for the local crematorium.

2) Shortage of clean drinking water

Among the risks listed by Dudley council is a shortage of safe, clean drinking water, with the document warning of “constraints of supply to drinking water due to short shelf life (4 to 6 weeks) of imported chemicals.”

3) Fears of unrest

Basingstoke council fears unrest following a No-Deal departure could see council buildings targeted and damaged.

4) Increased numbers of illegal immigrants

A document prepared by the Humber Local Resilience Forum warns it is very likely that there will be “increased opportunity for clandestines (Including unaccompanied children) to seek to entre [sic] the UK” in the case of No Deal.

5) Rise of the far right

And Dartford council warned specifically that far-right groups including Britain First have been “very active” in their area, and no-deal could make them a target.

6) Reduced housebuilding

Wrexham Council’s register mentions “reduced housebuilding” four separate times. Reasons given include “increased borrowing costs”, supply chain disruption, “increase [sic] costs” and “loss of EU residents from the construction industry.”

7) Fuel shortages

Worcestershire County Council is worried that fuel shortages will mean it is unable to deliver key services.

The risk register says: “The unknown factor would relate to fuel deliveries and implications for service delivery.

There would be a significant impact for the Council in the event of fuel shortages which would affect the ability of staff to attend for work and/or undertake travel in the course of their employment e.g. home visits etc. and directly impact on service provision such as Highways services.”

8) Rubbish piling up

Stevenage Borough Council is concerned about not being able to export waste to the EU.

This could lead to waste piling up in the UK.

It’s register says: “The UK recyclable material processing industry does not have sufficient capacity to absorb all of the dry mixed recyclables the UK collects and trades dry recyclables on the international market in order to achieve the best income streams and/or lowest costs.

Recent trade restrictions implemented by China on waste and recyclate imports has affected UK markets and this could be exacerbated by trade restrictions with EU countries.”

9) Traffic chaos

Rochford District Council believes No Deal is likely to cause traffic chaos in the local area.

It says: “There is speculation that the major routes to and from the UK’s freight and passenger ports will become gridlocked as the freedom of movement which currently exists within the single market is replaced by border controls.

If this risk materialises, the Council’s proximately to those major routes means that there is a risk that the transport routes across the district suffer additional congestion as road users try to avoid major blockages.”

Source: Read Full Article