While businesses in Northern Ireland are trying to cope with the multitude of problems posed by the pandemic, they are also facing another significant challenge further down the track.
In just over five months the Brexit transition period is due to end, with or without a trade deal with the EU, and we have no real idea what that will mean for firms that operate across the Irish Sea.
Boris Johnson's government rejected the opportunity to extend the deadline beyond December 31, which would have provided some breathing space as we grapple with a virus that has inflicted an immense shock to the economy and wider society.
Instead, we are hurtling towards an exit with no clear plan in place for the many businesses that will be impacted from January 1, 2021.
Now the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee has delivered a damning verdict on the government's approach, condemning it for leaving businesses unprepared for the end of the transition period.
The committee had conducted an inquiry into the Northern Ireland Protocol, the part of the Withdrawal Agreement that will see the north operate under different trading rules to Britain and which is designed to avoid border checks on the island of Ireland.
Under the protocol, Northern Ireland will be a part of the UK's customs territory but will still follow EU customs law and single market regulations on goods.
While the British government has acknowledged there will be more regulatory checks on some goods entering Northern Ireland, it has insisted there will be no new physical customs infrastructure here.
However, the committee has questioned the government's claim that the north's businesses will have unfettered access to the British market and called for more clarity by October 1.
The committee's Tory chairman Simon Hoare said: "The government needs to stop gambling with the future of business and of the people of Northern Ireland.''
He added that unfettered access was promised, but it looks less and less likely that it will be delivered.
There will be little confidence that Mr Johnson will have the concerns of Northern Ireland firms at the forefront of his mind right now.
But the last thing that businesses need is further uncertainty and the prospect of additional costs as they also deal with the consequences of coronavirus.
At the very least, they are entitled to clear information and the time to make the necessary preparations ahead of the transition period deadline.
