A series of free webinars will take place this summer to help Kent's firms prepare for the upcoming changes to import rules as a result of Brexit.

New rules for bringing animal and plant goods made in the European Union into Britain will come into force on October 1 before applying to all goods from January 1, 2022.

Ahead of their introduction, Kent Trading Standards and a number of international trade experts will take part in four Q&A-style online sessions.

The first of which takes place this week, on Thursday, June 24 with a session dedicated to food and drink.

A webinar on product safety follows on Thursday July 22 with the remaining two sessions on August 26 and September 23 covering questions and issues raised directly by businesses.

All briefings take place between 1-2pm.

Head of Kent Trading Standards, Steve Rock, said: “We are urging all businesses who bring goods into the UK from Europe to be prepared for new import rules. We particularly want Kent’s smaller and medium-sized companies to get ready because the price for getting it wrong could be significant.

“Goods that fail to comply with the new rules will be refused entry to the UK and business could be liable for the costs for checking, storing and re-working the goods so they meet customs’ requirements.

“Failure to deliver goods on time may also lead to a breach of contract, loss of trading partners, and reputational as well as financial damage – all of which is hard for any business to absorb but especially so for SMEs who naturally have less capacity to carry unplanned costs and challenges.”

To register for the events visit tinyurl.com/Brexitwebinars

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