DORSET has been included in a list of areas where the government can build a Brexit lorry park without needing consent from local officials.

The move comes after Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government Robert Jenrick gave himself new powers to construct the pens should they be needed to avoid issues at England's ports.

Both BCP Council and Dorset Council are named on a list of 29 local authorities in a statutory instrument laid before Parliament on Thursday, September 3.

The United Kingdom's withdrawal from the European Union is now less than four months away and the lorry parks could play an important part in plans to limit delays at the borders from January 1, 2021.

An explanatory note accompanying the instrument says: “This Order grants temporary planning permission for development consisting of the use of land for the stationing and processing of vehicles (particularly goods vehicles) entering or leaving Great Britain.

"The development must end by 31 December 2025, and all reinstatement works must have been completed by 31 December 2026."

The instrument includes some restrictions on where the pens could be built, with the sweeping powers not applying to land within a national park, any battlefield, garden or park of special historic interest, a World Heritage Site, a scheduled monument and sites of special scientific interest (SSSI).