THE announcement that Southampton and Hampshire have been included in a list of areas where the government can build a Brexit lorry park has been branded "undesirable" by a city MP.

Labour MP for Southampton Test, Alan Whitehead, has described the announcement as "undesirable" and claims the move is a "sign" that the Government "thinks that a no deal Brexit at the end of the year is increasingly likely".

The move comes after Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government Robert Jenrick gave himself new powers to construct the pens should they be needed to avoid issues at England's ports.

Daily Echo:

Both Southampton City Council and Hampshire County Council are named on a list of 29 local authorities in a statutory instrument laid before Parliament on Thursday, September 3.

Mr Whitehead told the Daily Echo: "It's also an admission that, as many of us have previously suggested, no deal Brexit will cause significant chaos to the country and to Southampton.

"This is something that shouldn't be needed had the Government done their job in negotiating the terms and conditions of our exit from the EU.

"In any case the idea that lorry parks should go ahead without consultation from local areas is an indication of desperate position the government now find themselves in.

"Imposing Lorry parks without needing this consultation is undesirable in terms of how local areas may respond to problems created by no deal Brexit and the impact it could have on port customs clearance and queues of lorries on various parts of country"

However Conservative MP for Southampton Itchen claims that "there is nothing to suggest that a lorry park will actually be needed to be built in Southampton at this stage".

Daily Echo:

He added: "The Government is very sensibly planning for all possible outcomes of the trade negotiations with the EU for after the end of the transition period.

“This includes investing £705 million in border infrastructure and new technology to ensure that goods pass through ports as seamlessly as possible.”

The United Kingdom's withdrawal from the European Union is now less than four months away and the lorry parks could play an important part in plans to limit delays at the borders from January 1, 2021.

An explanatory note accompanying the instrument says: “This Order grants temporary planning permission for development consisting of the use of land for the stationing and processing of vehicles (particularly goods vehicles) entering or leaving Great Britain.

"The development must end by 31 December 2025, and all reinstatement works must have been completed by 31 December 2026."