'Boris Burrows': Another Expensive White Elephant - How Exactly Does It Solve Brexit Trade Issues

14/02/2021

Apparently, and I don't quite understand how, an undersea tunnel between Great Britain and Northern Ireland is being seen as the way to ease the trade blockage caused by Brexit.

As far as I'm aware, the impact of Brexit on trade cannot be fixed by building a very expensive tunnel. Even if the tunnel could be completed in the next few months, which it obviously couldn't, it wouldn't solve the trade issues caused by Brexit.

Building a tunnel, doesn't negate the need for border controls.

A tunnel might well be a boon for movement between the different areas of the British Isles, but it would be a long-term project. The channel tunnel took five years to build and it would seem unrealistic to expect a tunnel between Northern Ireland and Scotland to be completed any quicker.

There is also the question as to whether the route being proposed is the best one.

The four route proposals for bridges or tunnels that were considered some years ago were, roughly, as shown above

The routes between the Republic of Ireland and Wales are longer than the two between Northern Ireland and Scotland; and the more water to cross, the more expensive the project. That would indicate that the Scottish routes would be the ones to consider. However, the geographical aspects (where the tunnels reach Great Britain) and the commercial logic suggest that the routes that arrive in Wales would make more sense.

It's not an answer to Brexit trade issues, but it is - maybe - an opportunity to improve transport links with our nearest neighbours.

Does anyone actually think this crossing could be the solution to Boris' failures in respect of Brexit?