Campaigners have called for more regulatory alignment with the EU amid delays of up to 20 hours in Dover, with many lorries carrying perishable food products.
Lorries from the European Union were being held for up to 20 hours at the UK’s busiest Brexit border post, according to recent media reports.
It comes as the UK government's new border control checks were brought in at the start of this month after more than a three year delay.
But businesses have described these checks as a “disaster” after IT outages led to lorries carrying meat, cheese and cut flowers from the EU being held for long periods.
The checks are necessary to ensure that food and plant products entering the UK from the EU meet required standards.
But campaign group Best for Britain have said that if the UK were to align standards with the EU where beneficial - such as in the case of animal and plant products - then these checks would not be required.
The UK Trade and Business Commission recommended, in their May 2023 report, the introduction of a new Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) and veterinary equivalence agreement with the EU to "facilitate seamless trade in livestock, plants, and related products.”
It is one of 114 recommendations made by the commission to improve trade and grow the economy.
Tom Brufatto, director of policy at Best for Britain, said the government's "artificial barriers to trade were always going to be damaging to business".
"It’s beggars belief that even after three years of delays they still aren’t functioning properly meaning more costs for struggling businesses, which will inevitably be passed onto consumers.
“This border chaos must end, and the best way to do that is through an SPS agreement with our European neighbours, as part of a broader policy of beneficial regulatory alignment.”
A Defra spokesperson confirmed that power outage over the weekend affected one of the systems required to process imports.
"For the majority of vehicles at the border there were no significant delays, but we immediately activated contingency arrangements for affected vehicles, working alongside HMRC and Border Force.
“We are working at pace to resolve the issue and expect that systems will be returning to normal functioning soon.
"Since the introduction of checks, our teams have been working closely with traders to ensure checks are completed efficiently and swiftly.”
