HMRC warns it could need £450m and 5,000 extra staff in case of ‘no deal’ Brexit
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HMRC will need to employ up to 5,000 extra staff and up to £450m if Britain crashes out the EU without a deal, the most senior civil servant in HMRC said today.
Jon Thompson warned MPs this afternoon that it will cost “several hundreds of millions of pounds” if no deal is reached before Brexit occurs.
He told MPs on the Public Accounts Committee that although the department currently has enough money, it would have to ask for “significantly more” next year.
“It will be several hundred million pounds if we are implementing the option of the United Kingdom leaving the European Union with no ongoing special relationship in April 2019.
“That is the most extreme version, I think, of leaving the European Union.
“In that scenario you are looking at an estimate of between £300-450m."
PAC member and Lib Dem MP Layla Moran said: "This blows a hole in claims that we can just crash out of Europe with no deal without disastrous consequences.
“HMRC is being asked to do the impossible, without enough time, resources or clarity over what will happen next."
