Oral Answers to Questions

Martyn Day Excerpts

Thursday 10th January 2019 Commons Chamber

[Tommy Sheppard (Edinburgh East) (SNP)]

4. What steps he is taking to reduce potential disruption to travel at UK ports in the event of the UK leaving the EU without a deal.

[Martyn Day (Linlithgow and East Falkirk) (SNP)]

9. What steps he is taking to reduce potential disruption to travel at UK ports in the event of the UK leaving the EU without a deal.

[Sandy Martin (Ipswich) (Lab)]

16. What recent steps he has taken to prepare UK ports for when the UK leaves the EU.

--- Later in debate ---

[Chris Grayling]

What is disappointing is that I would have hoped that the hon. Gentleman, as a Scottish Member, would welcome the additional opportunities for Scottish business as a result of expanded services from east coast ports to northern Europe provided by DFDS, which is a very substantial part of the contracts that we have let.

[Martyn Day]

Seaborne Freight has negative equity of just over £374,000, with one director being investigated by the Government for a trail of debt related to previous companies, yet due diligence did not flag this up. Can the Secretary of State confirm whether that is because due diligence guidance was to look not at individuals’ trading history, but only at Seaborne’s proposals? Why was such guidance provided?

[Chris Grayling]

As I said in the House earlier this week, we will not be paying Seaborne until ferries operate. From the point of view of business in Scotland, we have made sure that there are additional routes available from the east coast ports to northern Europe. In the event of a no-deal Brexit, which I hope will not happen, that should be a really valuable alternative for Scottish business, and the hon. Gentleman should welcome that.