Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

Brexit: Most NI checks on British goods to be scrapped

Brexit: Most NI checks on British goods to be scrapped

The EU has released its plan for a reduction of post-Brexit checks on goods and medicines arriving into Northern Ireland from the rest of the UK.

Northern Ireland has a special Brexit deal which keeps it in the EU's single market for goods and allows free-flowing trade with the EU.

But it means goods arriving from Britain face checks and controls.

The UK government said it is studying the detail of the EU's proposals.

The new plan, which seeks to calm a long-running dispute over a key part of the Brexit agreement, would remove about 80% of spot checks, the EU said.

The EU said customs paperwork would also be cut by 50%.

What is the EU proposing?


*  Most food products will not need to be physically checked when arriving into Northern Ireland from Great Britain.
*  A cut to the required administration for Northern Ireland importers.
*  Expanded trusted trader arrangements meaning more products and companies are exempt from customs tariffs.
*  Change to current laws to ensure no disruption to moving medicines across the Irish Sea.
*  Improved engagement with stakeholders in Northern Ireland including politicians and business groups.

The UK says the current arrangement imposes too many barriers.

At the start of the year, the new post-Brexit arrangement - known as the Northern Ireland Protocol - was introduced to help prevent checks along the border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.

It involves keeping Northern Ireland in the EU's single market for goods - but this, in turn, creates a new trade border with Great Britain. Unionists say this undermines their place in the UK.

Brexit Minister Lord Frost said the protocol - which the UK originally agreed to - was harming the peace process in Northern Ireland and that it undermined the Good Friday Agreement.

The EU acknowledges that it has caused difficulties for Northern Ireland businesses and is now attempting to ease that burden with what it calls "a different model".

It has produced "bespoke arrangements" covering food, customs and medicines.

European Commission Vice-President Maros Šefčovič said he had listened to, and engaged with, those in Northern Ireland.

"Today's proposals are a direct, genuine response to their concerns," he said.

"We have put a lot of hard work into them to make a tangible change on the ground."

 Maros Šefčovič says he has listened to and engaged with those in Northern Ireland

He said he looked forward to "engaging earnestly and intensively" with the UK government.

Some firms in Northern Ireland affected by the protocol say supply chains are being disrupted, and while there may be opportunities, there are also some problems.

'Intensive talks'


On Wednesday, a UK government spokesman said the next step should be a "rapidly conducted" round of intensive talks on both the UK and EU proposals.

"Significant changes which tackle the fundamental issues at the heart of the protocol, including governance, must be made if we are to agree a durable settlement which commands support in Northern Ireland," he said.

A solution is needed that both safeguards the Good Friday Agreement and "puts the UK-EU relationship on a stronger footing", he added.

Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) MP Ian Paisley told the BBC's Newsnight programme that Prime Minister Boris Johnson told him "personally that after agreeing to the protocol he would sign up to changing that protocol and indeed tearing it up, that this was just for the semantics".

"I do believe that the government didn't really want this to happen to Northern Ireland and they took a short term bet.

"The trouble is this has cost the business people of Northern Ireland £850m which we can't afford, so it's got to be fixed and it's got to be fixed fast."

Talks between the EU and UK on the new proposals are now likely to go on for several weeks.

Irish Foreign Minister Simon Coveney said the proposals were a "major effort" to address the post-Brexit trade rules between Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

"Meats, whether they're chilled meats or other food stuffs, can come into Northern Ireland and if they're staying in Northern Ireland then the checks that are currently required will not be required," he said.

This would be dependent on proper sharing of data and proper labelling, he added.

There are also plans to give Northern Ireland politicians and other interested parties greater influence over the implementation of the protocol.

However, the measures will fall short of UK demands to fundamentally change the protocol by removing the European Court of Justice (ECJ) from an oversight role.

On Tuesday, the UK's Brexit minister Lord Frost proposed plans for an entirely new protocol to replace the existing one.

As part of these plans, the UK government wants to reverse its previous agreement on the oversight role of the ECJ, which is the EU's highest court.

The agreement states that the ECJ has jurisdiction to rule on matters of EU law in Northern Ireland - so for example, if there was a dispute around complying with applicable EU law, the EU could take the UK to the ECJ.

The movement of food products from Great Britain to Northern Ireland have faced the biggest difficulties due to the EU's strict rules.

NI Protocol: The basics


The Northern Ireland Protocol is part of the Brexit deal: It is an agreement that means goods can pass freely across the Irish border. Basically, lorries don't have to stop and prove their goods follow EU rules when they go between Northern Ireland (in the UK) and the Republic of Ireland (in the EU).

It means Northern Ireland still follows some EU rules: As the rest of the UK (England, Scotland, Wales) no longer follow EU trade rules, some goods from there have to be checked when they arrive in Northern Ireland.

But some goods from Britain can't enter Northern Ireland at all: EU rules don't allow certain products, like chilled sausages, to enter its market. A grace period, where the rules don't apply, has been in place since January but no long-term solution has been found.

The EU says its new plan for food means that most products destined for consumers will not need to be physically checked when arriving into Northern Ireland from Great Britain.

A grace period, which means the protocol is not being fully implemented, currently means that supermarkets do not face a full range of controls.

The EU says its new proposals will go beyond this and cover more businesses.

It says the level of identity and physical checks will be up to 80% lower compared to other single market borders.

However, it says for this to work it will need the UK to build properly equipped border posts at Northern Ireland's ports, allow access to real time trade data and implement "only for sale in UK" labelling.

The possibility also remains that some GB food products could be banned in Northern Ireland.

'Express lane'


The EU maintains a "prohibited and restricted" list of food imports, which includes chilled meat products like fresh sausages.

The EU is proposing that "national identity goods", or those which do not have a non-GB supply chain, would be exempt, but that leaves open the possibility that some goods could be banned.

On customs, the EU is proposing what it calls a "unique facilitation" for paperwork, which it says will mean Northern Ireland importers can submit a greatly reduced amount of information.

It estimates this will halve the administrative burden.

It will also expand the concept of "goods not at risk" - this is an existing arrangement which Northern Ireland traders use so they do not have to pay EU tariffs on GB goods.

The EU says the combination of the agri-food and customs proposals will effectively create an "express lane" to help facilitate the movements of GB goods whose end destination is Northern Ireland.

The supply of medicines from Great Britain to Northern Ireland has emerged as one of the most difficult issues.

Pharmaceutical distributors have warned that if the current protocol was fully implemented they would have to withdraw hundreds of products from sale in Northern Ireland.

The EU is now proposing to change its laws around the regulation of medicines to keep products flowing.

Mr Šefčovič has previously said he will do "whatever it takes" to guarantee the supply of medicines.

This is a complicated area and the pharmaceutical industry will need time to assess if the plan will work.

Some unionists in Northern Ireland have held street protests against the protocol

The EU originally floated a version of this idea in July but the industry was unconvinced at that time.

The proposals for giving Northern Ireland politicians and other stakeholders a greater voice include the establishment of structured groups to provide a forum for discussion on key issues.

It would also see interested parties invited to some meetings of the Specialised Committee, one of the joint UK/EU bodies that oversee the protocol.

The EU says it also wants to create a stronger link between the Northern Ireland Assembly and the EU/UK Parliamentary Partnership Assembly.

It also intends to create a website to track which EU legislation is applicable in Northern Ireland.


 Watch the lorry journey from England to NI

Lord Frost says the NI Protocol is “not being implemented with the necessary sensitivity" and it had to be "redone".


AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán stated that Hungary will not adopt the euro because the European Union is falling apart.
Mayor in western Germany in intensive care after stabbing
Australian government pays Deloitte nearly half a million dollars for a report built on fabricated quotes, fake citations, and AI-generated nonsense.
BYD’s UK Sales Soar Nearly Nine-Fold, Making Britain Its Biggest Market Outside China
Latvia to Bar Tourist and Occasional Buses to Russia and Belarus Until 2026
Wave of Complaints Against Apple Over iPhone 17 Pro’s Scratch Sensitivity
Munich Airport Reopens After Second Drone Shutdown
Pro Europe and Anti-War Babiš Poised to Return to Power After Czech Parliamentary Vote
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs Sentenced to Fifty Months in Prison Following Prostitution Conviction
Altman Says GPT-5 Already Outpaces Him, Warns AI Could Automate 40% of Work
Russian Research Vessel 'Yantar' Tracked Mapping Europe’s Subsea Cables, Raising Security Alarms
Global Cruise Industry Posts Dramatic Comeback with 34.6 Million Passengers in 2024
U.S. Demands Brussels Scrutinize Digital Rules to Prevent Bias Against American Tech
Private Equity’s Fundraising Surge Triggers Concern of European Market Shake-Out
Tokyo’s Jimbōchō Named World’s Coolest Neighbourhood for 2025
European Officials Fear Trump May Shift Blame for Ukraine War onto EU
The Personality Rights Challenge in India’s AI Era
Italy Considers Freezing Retirement Age at 67 to Avert Scheduled Hike
Italian City to Impose Tax on Visiting Dogs Starting in 2026
Study Finds No Safe Level of Alcohol for Dementia Risk
Trump Says Ukraine Can Fully Restore Borders with NATO Backing
Europe Signals Stronger Support for Taiwan at Major Taipei Defence Show
Germany Weighs Excluding France from Key European Fighter Jet Programme
Cyberattack Disrupts Check-in and Boarding Systems at Major European Airports
Björn Borg Breaks Silence: Memoir Reveals Addiction, Shame and Cancer Battle
When Extremism Hijacks Idealism: How the Baader-Meinhof Gang Emerged and Fell
JWST Data Brings TRAPPIST-1e Closer to Earth-Like Habitability
Trump Orders $100,000 Fee on H-1B Visas and Launches ‘Gold Card’ Immigration Pathway
France’s Looming Budget Crisis and Political Fracture Raise Fears of Becoming Europe’s “Sick Man”
Three Russian MiG-31 Jets Breach Estonian Airspace in ‘Unprecedentedly Brazen’ NATO Incident
European manufacturers against ban on polluting cars: "The industry may collapse"
Turkish car manufacturer Togg Enters German Market with 5-Star Electric Sedan and SUV to Challenge European EV Brands
Christian Brueckner Released from German Prison after Serving Unrelated Sentence
World’s Longest Direct Flight China Eastern to Launch 29-Hour Shanghai–Buenos Aires Direct Flight via Auckland in December
New OpenAI Study Finds Majority of ChatGPT Use Is Personal, Not Professional
The conservative right spreads westward: a huge achievement for 'Alternative for Germany' in local elections
Pope Leo Warns of Societal Crisis Over Mega-CEO Pay, Citing Tesla’s Proposed Trillion-Dollar Package
Poland Green-Lights NATO Deployment in Response to Major Russian Drone Incursion
U.S. and China Agree on Framework to Shift TikTok to American Ownership
Le Pen Tightens the Pressure on Macron as France Edges Toward Political Breakdown
Czech Republic signs €1.34 billion contract for Leopard 2A8 main battle tanks with delivery from 2028
Penske Media Sues Google Over “AI Overviews,” Claiming It Uses Journalism Without Consent and Destroys Traffic
Indian Student Engineers Propose “Project REBIRTH” to Protect Aircraft from Crashes Using AI, Airbags and Smart Materials
One in Three Europeans Now Uses TikTok, According to the Chinese Tech Giant
Could AI Nursing Robots Help Healthcare Staffing Shortages?
NATO Deploys ‘Eastern Sentry’ After Russian Drones Violate Polish Airspace
The New Life of Novak Djokovic
German police raid AfD lawmaker’s offices in inquiry over Chinese payments
Volkswagen launches aggressive strategy to fend off Chinese challenge in Europe’s EV market
France Erupts in Mass ‘Block Everything’ Protests on New PM’s First Day
×