LONDON, 20 December, 2020, (TON): a group of British MPs warned in a report released Saturday that Britain has not yet installed all the complex IT systems and port infrastructure needed to ensure Brexit runs smoothly.

The Committee on the Future Relationship with the European Union, a cross-party group of lawmakers, released the report after meeting Thursday online.

The group said they were “concerned about the overall state of readiness” and warned that “some decisions on infrastructure have been taken too late”.

The “early months... are likely to be difficult”, the report said, echoing comments by Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who conceded the switch to new rules “might be difficult at first”.

Hilary Benn, a prominent Labour MP who chairs the committee said, “With just seven working days until the end of the transition period, significant concerns remain.”

The committee has warned that borders must not be compromised if there is no agreement on policing that ensures continued access to law enforcement tools including the European arrest warrant.

The warning comes in a report published on Saturday as Downing Street and Brussels continue to try to hammer out a deal, deadlocked over fishing, by the European parliament’s deadline.

The report criticised delayed delivery of IT systems in places such as ports, making it hard for businesses and traders to learn to use new government systems and update their in-house technology by the year-end deadline.

The report also said there could be problems with getting enough vets and other professionals to check goods and process customs declarations.

It warned that the government needed to have “robust contingency plans to deal with whatever happens” after 1^st January.

The MPs urged the EU to delay introducing import procedures on British goods, after the UK did the same for EU goods.

The cross-party committee, which backed the report unanimously, warned that the combination of Brexit uncertainty and Covid-19 could hamper UK businesses.

The UK officially left the EU on 31 January, 2020, but trade and other sectors remain within the bloc's structures until the end of the year. If this deadline passes, trade between the two sides will fall back on rules and tariffs established by the World Trade Organization in 1995.

As a result, the UK will have to start paying tariffs on imports from the EU. Deal or no deal, change is coming on January 1, as Britain will leave the EU single market and customs union.