Mr. Niall Cody:

-----and we continue to have ongoing dialogue on a range of issues. I was asked today about negotiations with HMRC in the context of our annual report and I said that we have an excellent relationship with HMRC and are in constant dialogue about practical issues that will arise. That was turned into "we are negotiating with HMRC". My colleagues and I meet to discuss customs issues, VAT issues and anti-smuggling issues, and this will continue. However, to sit down and ask whether we will have a transitional arrangement to scope out how transit will work does not make any sense until we understand whether the UK will be part of the common transit area. That is the context. I meet my counterpart in HMRC and we talk about some of the challenges we face. We face common challenges in this area. In some ways, as I said earlier, they face more significant challenges in that they will have to provide a legislative framework for what is agreed. Sitting down with HMRC and suggesting trying to work this out before we know what the UK's arrangement will be would not add anything.

What we will do is continue engaging with all our counterparts, as we have done. There is nothing to negotiate until we know what game we are playing.