A report by the Revenue Commissioners does not see a happy ending to Brexit negotiations with regards to the border between Northern Ireland and the Republic.
With 13,000 commercial vehicles driving between the UK and Ireland on a daily basis, the report says that the idea of an open border is unworkable from a customs perspective.
The report, which has been seen by
RTÉ, also spells out the additional level of staff and infrastructure that will have to go into managing customs at An Post, docks and airports — even regional airports such as Knock, Weston and Kerry.
The UK has steadfastly insisted that Ireland would not see the hard border return, and high-ranking representatives of the EU such as Guy Verhofstadt have shared this view. However, once the UK is no longer in the same customs union as the EU, serious problems will emerge at the border.
The draft report says that objects as simple as tools could need to be declared at the border, ultimately requiring stops and checks for many vehicles each day.
"Given that these temporary movements would now be across the border of the EU customs territory, controls would be unavoidable," the draft states.
