Tag Archives: holyhead

Roger Roberts writes: Upgrading the port of Holyhead?

By Lord Roger Roberts | Wed 16th December 2020 - 7:12 pm

Johnson’s government deserves no applause. In so many instances it has shown itself unable or unwilling even to recognise that problems exist. One of the issues that show how incompetent they are is that of the port of Holyhead. It is expected that, with the UK’s departure from the European Union that trade between the Irish Republic and the UK will be very different and with far more documentation required.

It is already announced that, in an attempt to avoid tariffs and time consuming form filling, one ferry line will be sailing directly from an Irish port to mainland Europe.

I asked the government how many vehicles were involved – the answer – HMG has not required any such estimate! Have they done something as simple as checking how many lorries are carried on ships arriving in Holyhead ?

On March 2 2020 the minister replied “The ports that are best prepared will have competitive advantage”. Was this a little hope? At that time Dublin had spent £30 million upgrading its port with extra warehousing, animal accommodation and so on. I contacted folk at Holyhead – not a penny spent on upgrading on this side of the Irish sea!