By Faisal Islam, political editor

How can some EU nations have prepared more effectively for no-deal Brexit than the UK?

The good news is that businesses are being prepared for the inevitable changes in just five months' time - there are seminars and workshops in every corner of the nation, being attended by hundreds of entrepreneurs, some so popular they've had to move them to arenas.

But, also being offered, are hundreds of millions in cheap state-funded business transformation loans, thousands in grants for advice, and personalised online impact reports. Even the hashtag #BrexitReady has been reserved.

The bad news is that none of that is happening in the country logically most impacted by a no-deal Brexit - i.e. us in the United Kingdom.


The above is what is happening in Ireland and the Netherlands.

Image: Mark Rutte and Theresa May met in London in February before her trip to the Netherlands in July

When the Dutch prime minister Mark Rutte told me, amid the post Salzburg-summit maelstrom, that "the Netherlands is better prepared for no-deal than the United Kingdom", it was not just the traditional Dutch overconfidence.

I was told that a country which has a third of its land mass below sea level tends to plan for all eventualities.

The Netherlands has also developed Brexit Loket - a website where business owners answer an online questionnaire and are then supplied with a personalised checklist for Brexit business preparedness.

It covers everything from the need for veterinary checks, to dumping UK suppliers for those exporters dependent on using EU free trade deals that rely on a certain proportion of EU parts.

In Ireland, the government has been urging businesses to adapt with evangelical zeal and with oodles of state cash. Up to €5,000 in a voucher given to businesses for expert advice on business transformation.

Image: Simon Coveney says Ireland is preparing for no-deal

Up to €1m in soft state [and EU] subsidised loans for changing supply chains and customers for businesses deemed to be "Brexit impacted" - broadly speaking with 15% of business in the UK.

Ireland's deputy prime minister Simon Coveney skipped around the Galway "Brexit Ready" roadshow telling me that he had to help Irish companies prepare, not only for tariffs and supply chain changes, but also "if there is a collapse in sterling".

Amazingly some UK headquartered businesses are being helped - but only by the Irish government, and only as long as they have a presence in the Republic, and in the meantime they are being gently encouraged to relocate more of their business.

Amazingly, UK banks - effectively majority government-owned, such as Ulster Bank (part of RBS) - are participating in these Brexit preparedness soft loans too - but only under the Irish scheme, as there is no UK government scheme.

Image: Government guidance on what UK firms and people should be ready for after Brexit

There are many beguiling aspects to Brexit, but there is something incredibly telling about the lack of such schemes in the UK, which will be, by definition, impacted more by such changes.

Perhaps the government does not believe that it is the role of the state to prepare the private sector for major changes in trading conditions. No-deal will be a moment when the most efficient, forward-thinking, and prepared will make bets on the future, and the winners will take all.

More likely, the government cannot advise businesses in too much detail because it still does not know how this drama is going to end. We have had the Brexit preparedness notices. But most of them are just that - indications of what might happen.

The bigger point here is that there are some in government who simply do not want to believe that there will be any impact on anybody.

Suggesting that a business will have to adjust is, those people would claim, Project Fear, and by definition untrue, therefore no one needs to adjust, meaning no help for Brexit adjustment is required. This is despite tier one manufacturers clearly adjusting their supply chains as we speak.

On the other hand, Brexiteers in government argue the opposite - that they are aware of the need for such support, but it is the Treasury and business departments who do not want businesses to prepare for no-deal, or a hard Brexit, as it makes such outcomes more likely.

This is not just a profoundly practical issue, it also impacts negotiations.

No one wants no-deal. But the likelihood increases by the day as the deal-making is stalled.

The EU perceives that as no-deal gets closer, its leverage increases, as the economics shows to them (and it does not matter that UK Brexiteers and some in government do not believe such analyses) that the UK will be most impacted absolutely and relatively.

On top of that, nations most likely to be impacted - Ireland, the Netherlands, and France [which published a draft no-deal law last week] think they are better prepared in any event. To this, add on one more layer - as part of no-deal preparedness I would predict that the EU27 would agree some [relatively speaking] massive fiscal support for spending in no-deal impacted areas.

Some of the tens of thousands of firms that have never before had to fill out customs forms but may soon have to do so. Merely publishing no deal preparedness notices surely doesn't cut it alone.

But none of that provides much relief to UK businesses facing uncertainty, even though most of the car industry has indicated its concerns about production stoppages after a no-deal.

They are preparing in one way - by delaying negotiations on pay with workers, because of trading uncertainty over Brexit, with some suggesting much lower settlements, or in some cases, freezes, according to unions.

Surely though, there is a more fundamental role for government in helping businesses, particularly small- and medium-sized enterprises. For example, some of the tens of thousands of firms that have never before had to fill out customs forms but may soon have to do so.

Merely publishing no-deal preparedness notices surely doesn't cut it alone.

The obvious consequence is fairly substantial change in the economy, with many businesses confused or unaware.

The Dutch and the Irish are encouraging UK businesses to use their Brexit preparedness services. It is an astonishing state of affairs that it is even necessary.

Sky Views is a series of comment pieces by Sky News editors and correspondents, published every morning.

Previously on Sky News: Adam Boulton - How the 'Sultan Of Swing' became an election hero