I think we all wish it was a surprise that this hapless government has managed to cock something up. But in the current climate, I guess the PEACH system is pretty low down on its achievement list - somewhere way below a couple of lost discs and a pile of illicit cash.

But what this trade is most bothered about at the moment is the department of agriculture’s complete inability to implement its own pre-notification system without causing huge discomfort to importers, and damage to the products potentially delayed in the pipeline while paperwork piles up.

For Defra to say that traders will not have incurred losses due to the latest bout of ill-timed downtime for PEACH is ludicrous. Every hour lost has the potential to damage not only the life-cycle and physical condition of a product in transit, but the ability of an importer to meet delivery times that are set in stone by largely merciless customers.

For the trade’s association to say that importers have lost confidence in the plant health division is extremely telling. The FPC has worked tirelessly with Defra to ensure that this system meets the needs of all parties; it has an inside track on the process and people involved, as well as a line into the system’s users - its members.

Defra must stop stalling and assure the industry that the final few frantic weeks of the year will not be ruined by yet more systemic failure.