Do we pay import duty and VAT now ?

No - you miss my point. If you are in favour of protectionism - why do you want to be a Single Market with the EU, where is the protection then for British businesses?

The Single Market was the protection. It’s a market of over 500m people, which can collectively trade as a single large market globally, making better opportunities than a single smaller entity, such as a single country, trying to do the same.

From day one of leaving the EU, as a U.K. business it’s been noticeably worse (yes, I’m sure it’s just “teething problems”, for people who don’t actually import/export themselves). As well as the additional paperwork, the costs of shipping have gone up massively, as have the costs of raw materials.
 
Last edited:
The Single Market was the protection. It’s a market of over 500m people, which can collectively trade as a single large market globally, making better opportunities than a single smaller entity, such as a single country, trying to do the same.
I know what the Single Market is - I'm trying to discover why protectionism from businesses in for example Canada is needed when protectionism from businesses in Spain is not.

If you want protectionism for UK business, what does it matter where that foreign competition is coming from?
 
I know what the Single Market is - I'm trying to discover why protectionism from businesses in for example Canada is needed when protectionism from businesses in Spain is not.

If you want protectionism for UK business, what does it matter where that foreign competition is coming from?

Because trade is a two way street, with most benefit coming from trading with your geographically nearest markets/customers.

If we actively choose to take away the frictionless trade with our nearest markets, for political dogma and theoretical “sovereignty”, then remove all financial barriers for everyone else too, that doesn’t help U.K. businesses in any way at all.
 
Because trade is a two way street, with most benefit coming from trading with your geographically nearest markets/customers.

If we actively choose to take away the frictionless trade with our nearest markets, for political dogma and theoretical “sovereignty”, then remove all financial barriers for everyone else too, that doesn’t help U.K. businesses in any way at all.
But we export more to countries outside of the EU and even the proportion of imports has been falling for the past 10 years.

I can totally see the argument for protectionism - what I fail to see is the argument that we need protectionism when trading with Canada but totally open borders when trading with Spain.
 
Hi everyone. Sorry for reviving an old thread but its better than starting a new one to ask a simple question.

I am thinking of buying a T-shirt from Australia. It costs £15 plus £9 shipping. How much will I have to pay in fees when it arrives in the UK? Thanks.
 
Hi everyone. Sorry for reviving an old thread but its better than starting a new one to ask a simple question.

I am thinking of buying a T-shirt from Australia. It costs £15 plus £9 shipping. How much will I have to pay in fees when it arrives in the UK? Thanks.

According to this £4.8 Plus the handling fees that whoever is doing the shipping will charge


But the chances are you may pay nothing. When I lived in the UK I would regularly get DVDs, Books...etc. from Amazon US even Australia and never once paid fees I think there's some limit below which they don't bother charging I think it used to be around £35 as Box Sets would get charged but individual disks wouldn't


 
Last edited:
According to this £4.8 Plus the handling fees that whoever is doing the shipping will charge


But the chances are you may pay nothing. When I lived in the UK I would regularly get DVDs, Books...etc. from Amazon US even Australia and never once paid fees I think there's some limit below which they don't bother charging I think it used to be around £35 as Box Sets would get charged but individual disks wouldn't


That sounds alright. I might take a chance on it. I think youre right about items under a certaiin value having no charge but I cant remember the limit either. Thanks for the help.
 
That sounds alright. I might take a chance on it. I think youre right about items under a certaiin value having no charge but I cant remember the limit either. Thanks for the help.
The lower limit for VAT was removed a few years ago, but it still might sneak through. Despite assurances, the UK border for goods is still porous.
 

The latest video from AVForums

TV Buying Guide - Which TV Is Best For You?
Subscribe to our YouTube channel
Back
Top Bottom