On top of that, the EU offered a further extension of the transition period in consideration of the exceptional circumstances caused by COVID-19. Johnson did not take it up, because he needed to signal his determination to Get Brexit Done and, preferably, force the EU to make last minute concessions to secure a post-Brexit trade agreement.
With or without a “deal”, there will in principle be customs checks on all cargo, because the UK refused to accept the conditions that the EU required for “frictionless” free trade (freedom of movement, regulatory alignment and jurisdiction for the European Court of Justice). Hence the UK government’s insistence that physical customs checks could be replaced by online clearance systems and, now, the rush to build inland clearance facilities.
