Brexit: Portsmouth port bosses accuse government of withholding cash
February 2, 2021, 12:10 pm

Brexit: Portsmouth port bosses accuse government of withholding cash

The Portsmouth facility was the only one planned in the UK where vets could approve the import of live animals.

Lisa O'CarrollLocal council and MP add to calls for more funding for vital inspection post, without which UK’s livestock breeding industry may be at risk

The UK’s cattle- and horse-breeding businesses could be at risk because of a government decision to cut funding for a Brexit inspection post for livestock at Portsmouth harbour, the local port, council and MP have claimed.

The local authority, which owns the port, has been left with a £7m shortfall for the facility, which will be necessary if it is to continue with the export and import of live animals after 1 July, when government border health checks come into force.

A council report, due to be discussed by the city council on Tuesday, said it was the only facility planned in the UK for vets to approve the import of live animals for breeding rather than slaughter, a business worth £10m a year.

“The country needs Portsmouth to build this vital trading infrastructure, but this short-sighted government continues to withhold the necessary funding,” said Stephen Morgan, the local MP and shadow armed forces minister.

Mike Sellers, the director of Portsmouth International Port, said it was a further £5m short of cash for the main border control post, which will conduct health checks on food and goods of animal origin, and another £2m-£3m short on related projects.

It applied for £32m to build the two facilities but was allocated £17.1m after a £200m port infrastructure fund created by the government in the autumn was oversubscribed.

While other ports including Dover are privately owned, Portsmouth is in public ownership and the council will not seek to raise funds through local taxation. As a result, it has scrapped the plan for the live animal inspection post, something the National Farmers’ Union says could end the animal breeding business.

“We’re only doing these infrastructure projects because the government are requiring us to do so at Portsmouth,” said Morgan.

Sellers said: “About 9,000 racehorses come through the port every year as well as live animals for breeding purposes. But there is no business case to borrow funds.” He said the only solution was for the government to stump up funds.

Morgan is also concerned about the shortfall in funding for the traffic-easing infrastructure, as the port’s position is so constrained it is only “13 lorries away from the M275” arterial route.

“It’s a densely populated city with very few routes in and out of the city, so any sort of congestion as a result of infrastructure will have a devastating impact on Portsmouth levels of congestion and traffic flow in an area with high air pollution,” said Morgan.

Brexit checks came into force on 1 January in the EU but are being phased in over six months by the UK to allow businesses to adapt, with the race now on to finish all border checkpoints.

A report for the Portsmouth council cabinet meeting on Tuesday cites NFU statistics showing that 30,000 breeding animals (pigs, sheep and cattle) are exported every year through Portsmouth, with a similar number imported, and without the control posts in the city a reciprocal post will not be built in Cherbourg, the corresponding port in France. This will threaten high-value exports including thoroughbred stud farming.

The NFU told the council: “The absence of BCP facilities in the EU-facing port will mean that UK farmers are unable to export high-value breeding material to the EU.”

The report says the government’s infrastructure fund was “substantially oversubscribed” and after a “deep-dive meeting with consultants and Cabinet Office officials, all bids were cut”, including contingencies from 40% to 10%.

Sellers said the “great irony” was that Portsmouth was considered important enough to the nation to be a Brexit contingency route for medicine supplies by the Department for Transport, but not good enough for normal business by the Cabinet Office.

The government said the breeding sector was not wholly dependent on Portsmouth. It said infrastructure would normally be funded by the ports themselves and Portsmouth had received £17m from the fund.

“A number of border control posts will be designated for live animal imports including Dover, Sevington (Eurotunnel) and Holyhead, which are the ports with the highest volumes of animal imports from the EU,” said a government spokesman.

source: Lisa O'Carroll

Levant

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BENEFIT, the Kingdom’s innovator and leading company in Fintech and electronic financial transactions service, held its Annual General Meeting (AGM) at the company’s headquarters in the Seef District.
During the meeting, shareholders approved all items listed on the agenda, including the ratification of the minutes of the previous AGM held on 26 March 2024. The session reviewed and approved the Board’s Annual Report on the company’s activities and financial performance for the fiscal year ended 31 December 2024, and the shareholders expressed their satisfaction with the company’s operational and financial results during the reporting period.
The meeting also reviewed the Independent External Auditor’s Report on the company’s consolidated financial statements for the year ended 31 December 2024. Subsequently, the shareholders approved the audited financial statements for the fiscal year. Based on the Board’s recommendation, the shareholders approved the distribution of a cash dividend equivalent to 10% of the paid-up share capital.
Furthermore, the shareholders endorsed the allocation of a total amount of BD 172,500 as remuneration to the members of the Board for the year ended 31 December 2024, subject to prior clearance by related authorities.
The extension of the current composition of the Board was approved, which includes ten members and one CBB observer, for a further six-month term, expiring in September 2025, pending no objection from the CBB.
The meeting reviewed and approved the Corporate Governance Report for 2024, which affirmed the company’s full compliance with the corporate governance directives issued by the CBB and other applicable regulatory frameworks. The AGM absolved the Board Members of liability for any of their actions during the year ending on 31st December 2024, in accordance with the Commercial Companies Law.
In alignment with regulatory requirements, the session approved the reappointment of Ernst & Young (EY) as the company’s External Auditors for the fiscal year 2025, covering both the parent company and its subsidiaries—Sinnad and Bahrain FinTech Bay. The Board was authorised to determine the external auditors’ professional fees, subject to approval from the CBB, and the meeting concluded with a discussion of any additional issues as per Article (207) of the Commercial Companies Law.
Speaking on the company’s performance, Mr. Mohamed Al Bastaki, Chairman BENEFIT , stated: “In terms of the financial results for 2024, I am pleased to say that the year gone by has also been proved to be a success in delivering tangible results. Growth rate for 2024 was 19 per cent. Revenue for the year was BD 17 M (US$ 45.3 Million) and net profit was 2 Million ($ 5.3 Million).

Mr. Al Bastaki also announced that the Board had formally adopted a new three-year strategic roadmap to commence in 2025. The strategy encompasses a phased international expansion, optimisation of internal operations, enhanced revenue diversification, long-term sustainability initiatives, and the advancement of innovation and digital transformation initiatives across all service lines.
“I extend my sincere appreciation to the CBB for its continued support of BENEFIT and its pivotal role in fostering a stable and progressive regulatory environment for the Kingdom’s banking and financial sector—an environment that has significantly reinforced Bahrain’s standing as a leading financial hub in the region,” said Mr. Al Bastaki. “I would also like to thank our partner banks and valued customers for their trust, and our shareholders for their ongoing encouragement. The achievements of 2024 set a strong precedent, and I am confident they will serve as a foundation for yet another successful and impactful year ahead.”
Chief Executive of BENEFIT; Mr. Abdulwahed AlJanahi commented, “The year 2024 represented another pivotal chapter in BENEFIT ’s evolution. We achieved substantial progress in advancing our digital strategy across multiple sectors, while reinforcing our long-term commitment to the development of Bahrain’s financial services and payments landscape. Throughout the year, we remained firmly aligned with our objective of delivering measurable value to our shareholders, strategic partners, and customers. At the same time, we continued to play an active role in enabling Bahrain’s digital economy by introducing innovative solutions and service enhancements that directly address market needs and future opportunities.”
Mr. AlJanahi affirmed that BENEFIT has successfully developed a robust and well-integrated payment network that connects individuals and businesses across Bahrain, accelerating the adoption of emerging technologies in the banking and financial services sector and reinforcing Bahrain’s position as a growing fintech hub, and added, “Our achievements of the past year reflect a long-term vision to establish a resilient electronic payment infrastructure that supports the Kingdom’s digital economy. Key developments in 2024 included the implementation of central authentication for open banking via BENEFIT Pay”
Mr. AlJanahi concluded by thanking the Board for its strategic direction, the company’s staff for their continued dedication, and the Central Bank of Bahrain, member banks, and shareholders for their valuable partnership and confidence in the company’s long-term vision.