The New Zealand Shippers Council is concerned that the recent announcement by Port Napier that it will impose an insurance levy charge on transport operators is the thin end of the wedge for the countrys exporters and importers. The levy came into effect on October 1 and will be passed onto exporters and importers effectively through the back door as added cost in the supply chain.  Chairman of the NZ Shippers Council, Mike Knowles said it is an alarming precedent. “What we’re seeing is a levy that lands on those who have no contractual relationship with the port and therefore…

Britain has set out proposals to ensure that goods and services currently approved for sale across the UK and EU can continue to be traded after Brexit. The plans published by Brexit Secretary David Davis were welcomed by business leaders as an improvement on EU proposals which would require separate regulatory processes on either side of the Channel from the day after UK withdrawal. Mr Davis said the UK was now ready to begin a "formal dialogue" on elements of the future UK-EU trade relationship, such as customs. But Brussels indicated it will continue to resist UK pressure to bring…