The UK government has stopped its plan to simplify border trade after Brexit by pausing the "single trade window" (STW) project. They spent £110m on contracts with Deloitte and IBM but have not made progress since January 2023. The last Conservative government promised to create the “world’s most effective border” by 2025 using STW, a digital platform to let importers and exporters upload all trade documents in one place. However, costs and delays halted the project this year. TaxWatch, a thinktank, found no money has been spent since early 2023, with the Treasury saying the programme was "brought to an early closure." Mike Lewis, TaxWatch director, told the Financial Times, "For all intents and purposes the single trade window has been cancelled without HMRC or Deloitte and IBM having delivered anything after spending over £110m on it. But neither HMRC nor ministers appear to wish to admit this." The government responded that while the delivery was paused for 2025-26, "policy development" continues with no clear timeline. Even Keir Starmer’s Labour government promised to deliver the STW in recent trade strategy documents, stressing commitment to reduce trade burdens. A government spokesperson said, "We remain committed to delivering a single trade window, recognising its potential benefits to trade." The Brexit deal ensures tariff-free UK-EU trade but includes new rules causing delays, especially in goods export, which dropped 18% compared to 2019. Deloitte declined comment; IBM was contacted for a statement.