With less than six months until the UK leaves the European Union, it seems Thurrock Council has yet to assess how it will impact the borough and its residents.

A series of Freedom of Information requests revealed council officers have not been instructed to produce a Brexit “briefing” and there have been no meetings between senior council members and MPs.

Despite repeated requests, the council failed to provide any updated information on its Brexit plan.

Thurrock is likely to feel the impact of Brexit more than most areas in the county because it is home to three major ports.

If the government fails to come to an agreement on the customs border it will mean a major increase in inspections of EU goods, as well as an increase in custom checks.

The delays could create congestion on the surrounding road network.

Furthermore, the loss of freedom of movement could be damaging to the health care workforce, which relies considerably on staff who are EU nationals.

During the Brexit vote, on June 23 on 2016, Thurrock voted hugely in favour of Brexit, and was one of the most Euro-sceptic areas of Essex.

Last month it was revealed that Thurrock is already one of the most “under-doctored boroughs in the country” and is facing a nursing shortage.

Other councils in Essex including Southend and Basildon, confirmed they are in the process of preparing Brexit plans.

Councillor John Lamb, leader of Southend Council, said: “The council is carefully monitoring the situation to ensure we are fully prepared for and consider the likely risks and opportunities for the Council of the UK leaving the European Union.

“A paper considering the possible implications for the Council and wider community is being drafted and will be presented and considered by cabinet on November 6.”

Basildon Councillor Andrew Schrader, chairman of the Economic Development and Growth Committee, said: “While negotiations are still underway, we understand that local businesses will need to prepare for the challenges and opportunities leaving the EU may present to trade and export.

“This is why we are in the process of producing a specialist research report to support businesses and identify specific needs, which will be available later this year.

“The council will also continue to work in partnership with the Essex Chamber of Commerce, Invest Essex and neighbouring local authorities to support businesses.”

Update 6.30pm

Thurrock Council has now responded to the Gazette's request for comment.

Councillor Mark Coxshall, portfolio holder for regeneration, said: “We are continuing to monitor the preparations for the UK exiting the European Union, but formal analysis of the impact will not be undertaken until more details emerge as the negotiation process continues.

“However, based on recent Local Government Association publications, the council’s leadership group has already started to identify potential service-related impacts should negotiations result in a no-deal Brexit outcome. A working group has also recently been formed from this and further impact mitigation work is anticipated to continue through this group and leadership group over the coming months.

“Discussions are also taking place through our emergency planning department’s representation at the Essex Resilience Forum - the results of which will feed into our analysis and impact mitigation work.

“In addition, we are in discussion with port operators in the borough about the potential impact of changes to customs checks for EU goods, in particular on traffic in the borough and for our trading standards service operating at the ports. We are also working closely with National Trading Standards.”