Daily Archives: July 21, 2020

They have played an unglamorous but essential role in business for almost a century. Now a shortage of wooden pallets is threatening to derail Britain's cross-border trade with the European Union after Brexit.

From January, wooden pallets moving goods between the U.K. and EU will need to comply with ISPM-15 -- an international rule that requires them to be baked to 56 degrees Celsius for at least 30 minutes to prevent the spread of pests and diseases.

In a letter to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs last month, the head of the U.K.'s Timber Packaging and Pallet Confederation warned that Britain won't have enough that comply with the rule -- and the coronavirus has hampered efforts to plug the shortfall.

"It is even more unlikely the 1st January, 2021 compliance date will be met," John Dye, the lobby group's president, wrote in the June 7 letter. "There has been a lot of progress made by our pragmatic industry, but there is still a lot more to come along."

The shortage adds to a growing list of obstacles that businesses engaged in cross-border trade will face after Britain's final parting with the EU at the year-end. Firms are already grappling with how to produce customs declarations for the first time in three decades, while they also face the prospect of their truck movements being policed by an as yet untested government IT system.

According to Dye, as many as 100 million pallets move between the U.K. and EU each year. So far, they haven't needed to comply with ISPM-15 because movements between EU member states are exempt -- something that will come to an end when the post-Brexit transition period ends on Dec. 31.

Pallet makers in both the U.K. and EU have been trying to ramp up production, but their efforts have been hit by the pandemic, Dye said. Installations of new kilns to heat-treat pallets were badly delayed by the virus, he said.

"It has slowed things up," Dye said by telephone. "We were very disappointed the government didn't ask for an extension to cover the six months we lost," he said, referring to the U.K.'s decision not to extend the transition period.

Asked whether the U.K. government believes it will have an adequate supply of ISPM-15 compliant pallets ready for Jan. 1, DEFRA didn't give a direct answer.

"Treatment capacity for wooden pallets has increased," the department said in a statement. "We are working closely with industry to help ensure a sufficient stock of compliant pallets in time for January."

The ISPM-15 requirement will apply to goods moving in both directions. In a 206-page document outlining its plans for the border after Brexit released last week, the British government said imports may be subject to checks for compliance with the standard.

Dye, who is also the technical & industry affairs director at Scott Pallets, said he hopes the EU won't enforce the rule strictly because the bloc, too, has a shortage of compliant pallets. But he still tells customers that they can't be certain the EU will go easy on the U.K.

"They might be stopped," he said of the pallets. "It's quite frustrating when politicians are playing with people's businesses."

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The wrong kind of pallets threatens border trouble after Brexit - San Antonio Express-News

Tuesday, July 21, 2020 5:41 a.m. EDT by Thomson Reuters

By Elizabeth Piper and William James

LONDON (Reuters) - Britain's government failed to find out whether Russia meddled in the 2016 referendum on membership of the EU, a parliamentary report released on Tuesday said, saying the intelligence services should investigate and make their findings public.

The long-anticipated report by parliament's intelligence and security committee found that Russia had tried to influence a separate referendum in 2014 when voters in Scotland rejected independence.

But it said the committee was unable to determine whether Russia had attempted to influence the European Union referendum, which led to Britain's exit from the bloc this year.

When asked for evidence on suspected Russian meddling in the vote, Britain's main domestic intelligence agency MI5 produced just six lines of text, the committee said.

"It is nonetheless the Committee's view that the UK Intelligence Community should produce an analogous assessment of potential Russian interference in the EU referendum and that an unclassified summary of it be published," it said in the report, which was produced more than a year ago and shelved until now.

The government of Prime Minister Boris Johnson, who came to power as one of the leading figures in the victorious campaign to leave the EU, rejected the call for a further review. A spokesman for Johnson said the prime minister was confident the referendum result to leave the EU was fair.

The report cast Russia as a hostile power which posed a significant threat to Britain and the West across a range of fronts, from espionage and cyber to election meddling and laundering dirty money.

"It appears that Russia considers the UK one of its top Western intelligence targets," the report said.

It said there were open source indications that Russia had sought to influence the Brexit campaign. But hard evidence had not been produced.

"The key point is ... they had not sought even to ask that question and that is at the heart of this report," Stewart Hosie, a Scottish National Party member of the committee, told reporters.

British foreign minister Dominic Raab rejected claims that the government had avoided investigating Russia.

"We have a long period recognising the enduring and significant threat posed by Russia," he said. "We are not for a second complacent."

Russia has repeatedly denied meddling in the West, casting the United States and Britain as gripped by anti-Russian hysteria.

"Russia has never interfered in the electoral processes of any country in the world - not the United States, not Britain, nor any other countries," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said.

Foreign Ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova cast the report as "Russophobia in a fake frame".

RUSSIAN MEDDLING AND MONEY

Relations between London and Moscow plunged to post-Cold War lows after Britain blamed Russia for poisoning former Russian spy Sergei Skripal and his daughter Yulia with a nerve agent in the English city of Salisbury.

Last week, the British government said it believed Russian actors had tried to meddle in last year's general election, which was held after the report published on Tuesday was finished.

When discussing the EU referendum, the report is heavily redacted and there was a classified annex that was not published.

The committee also cast Russia as a source of corrupt money that had been welcomed in London, the world's premier international financial capital.

"The UK welcomed Russian money, and few questions - if any - were asked about the provenance of this considerable wealth," the report said. "The UK has been viewed as a particularly favourable destination for Russian oligarchs and their money."

"It offered ideal mechanisms by which illicit finance could be recycled through what has been referred to as the London 'laundromat'," the report said.

(Additional reporting by Alexander Marrow in Moscow; Writing by Guy Faulconbridge; Editing by Sarah Young, Paul Sandle and Peter Graff)

See the original post here:

UK government failed to determine whether Russia meddled in Brexit vote: report - WTVB News

By AFP

LONDON:The British government should properly investigate any Russian interference in the 2016 Brexit referendum after failing to look into it despite past evidence of Kremlin meddling, a parliamentary report said Tuesday.

It said oligarchs with links to Russian President Vladimir Putin used their wealth for 'extending patronage and building influence across a wide sphere of the British establishment'.

"There should have been an assessment of Russian interference in the referendum. And there must now be one, and the public must be told the results of that assessment," intelligence and security committee member Kevan Jones said.

The report said it could not point to specific evidence of Russian meddling in the 2016 vote on Britain's EU membership and a 2014 poll on Scotland's independence from the United Kingdom, which the "no" camp won by 55 per cent to 45 per cent.

But Jones said this happened because the UK government "actively avoided asking the question".

"No one wanted to touch it with a 10-foot pole," Jones said.

"In brief, Russian influence in the UK is the new normal, and there are a lot of Russians with very close links to Putin who are well integrated into the UK business and social scene, and accepted because of their wealth," the report said.

"This level of integration - in 'Londongrad' in particular - means that any measures now being taken by the Government are not preventative but rather constitute damage limitation."

"Londongrad" is widely viewed as a central part of London that is a haven for Russian oligarchs, who invest in luxury properties in prestigious areas such as Chelsea.

The report's release has been delayed for months, leading to accusations for the opposition that Prime Minister Boris Johnson wanted to suppress it.

He came to head the government a year ago, after replacing his Conservative party predecessor Theresa May, who became prime minister immediately after the Brexit vote.

See the article here:

'UK govt should probe any Russian interference in 2016 Brexit poll' - The New Indian Express

Sen ODonoghue is the chief executive officer of the Killybegs Fishermens Organisation, the largest producers body of its type in Ireland.

ODonoghue previously worked at the Irish agriculture and fisheries ministries, as well as the national seafood agency, Bord Iascaigh Mhra (BIM). He served on the board of the European Association of Producer Organisations for a decade and is a noted expert in the workings of the European Unions Common Fisheries Policy.

ODonoghue talked to SeafoodSource about falling prices due to a COVID-related collapse in demand, the fishing impacts of Brexit, and explained his opinion as to why there shouldnt be a cut to fuel subsidies at the ongoing World Trade Organization talks on ending harmful subsidies in the global fisheries sector. He also discussed the dispute between fishermen and the Sea Fisheries Protection Authority (SFPA) over the method of weighing stocks landed by Irish trawlers.

SeafoodSource: Did the weighing issue you had with the SFPA get sorted out, or are the legal proceedings going ahead?

ODonoghue: We are hoping to get a solution with the SFPA in terms of accurate weighing at the pier side. We are not against weighing on the pier. What we cant accept is weighing of water as fish. We have been working with them [SFPA] very closely in terms of putting in the same flowscale system that exists in the factories which is very accurate putting that on the pier. We are in a very advanced stage of doing that. And if the SFPA signs off on it, then we have solved it there wont be an issue between us.

In terms of the legal proceedings, I am not prepared to comment, but we want that solution as quickly as possible. They are only requesting us in terms of the legal monitoring requirements on them as a control authority of an E.U. member. That is 5 percent of landed and 7.5 percent of a species has to be weighed.

SeafoodSource: You said in May that prices your members were getting for their catch had dropped on average between 50 and 70 percent as a result of the coronavirus crisis. Has the situation improved?

ODonoghue: We were very impacted in April, May, and part of June. Now, prices are down 25 to 35 percent on where they were pre-COVID. This is very worrying. Its not just us; I am in close contact with our European colleagues, but because we are export-oriented, the impact is greater. In our markets like Spain and Italy and the U.K. and China, they were all in lockdown and European markets have not come back to where they were.

SeafoodSource: Have you been able to divert any of your products into other markets, like Asia?

ODonoghue: Our Asian market mainly relates to shellfish and some pelagics. Our mackerel and blue whiting seasons were almost complete when COVID hit. But we are very worried about what happens in the autumn. Our African market is very impacted by lower oil prices, which might be welcome for fishing [fuel] but not for demand in our key markets, like Nigeria.

SeafoodSource: Are you more optimistic or worried about a Brexit fisheries solution?

ODonoghue: We are at a difficult stage. We know now for definite there will be no extension [to the transition period], so its do or die come 31 December. We are concerned that if the whole trade negotiations collapse and theres no deal, [it will be] an unmitigated disaster for the Irish fishing industry and will also impact on the U.K. fishing industry even worse. There will be six meetings [between British and E.U. negotiators] in July and August, with the last one on 17 August. Its absolutely critical for us that the mandate which the E.U. gave [chief Brexit negotiator] Michel Barnier was that fisheries has to be linked to the wider trade negotiations. Barnier has made clear that if there is no fisheries agreement, there will be no trade agreement. Linking these is so important because in 11 of the 12 key areas for discussion, the E.U. has the upper hand. If you have the upper hand on 11 of the 12, then surely you can negotiate on fisheries. [But] assuming theres no give on the E.U. side, the key thing we want is the existing sharing arrangement is maintained. [Ireland] shares a huge number of stocks with the U.K. We cant have negotiations every year on access and quotas.

SeafoodSource: Similar to that kind of negotiations that takes place at the E.U. level every year?

ODonoghue: What we discuss every year is scientific advice but the share of the stocks was decided in 1983. Each nations percentage share doesnt change every year. The U.K. wants a Norway-style deal with the E.U., but we dont discuss every year a sharing arrangement with Norway. This was decided in 1996.

SeafoodSource: There is a new agriculture and fisheries minister in Ireland. How would you like to see him approach his job?

ODonoghue: We have given him our three priorities for discussion: Brexit, a post-COVID reboot for Irish fisheries, and the program for government. There is a whole marine section in the program for government and we want to go through that with him. We do support the program, as there are key things in there about Brexit and COVID, but the important thing will be to implement them.

SeafoodSource: Ireland and Spain were both the target of much criticism this year for allegedly pushing for quota levels beyond scientifically advised levels. Is this criticism fair?

ODonoghue: Neither fair nor accurate. There are totally ignoring that TAC [total allowable catch] and quota system of the E.U. In the E.U. part of the Northeast Atlantic [where Ireland fishes] 99 percent of stocks will be fished at sustainable levels in 2020. They say because we [Ireland] have 21 percent of the mackerel stock, we are 21 percent of the problem. Because Iceland and Russia are fishing beyond sustainable yields, we are presented as being 21 percent of the problem.

SeafoodSource: So there is no sustainability problem in E.U. waters?

ODonoghue: We are not talking about the Mediteranean or the Black Sea, they are a different kettle of fish. But 99 percent of stocks in the Northeast Atlantic are sustainable.

SeafoodSource: Do you think there are overcapacity issues in the European fleet?

ODonoghue: There is a definitional problem. At the moment, the capacity figures related to gross tonnage and power. But its not about capacity or power rather, its about if you have sufficient access to quota to be viable. We need to look at each fleet and the size and the target of that fleet. Do they have access to sufficient quota to be viable? If not, then we have to start introducing decommissioning.

SeafoodSource: How do you view the ongoing talks at the WTO on ending what's termed as harmful subsidies to fisheries?

ODonoghue: I am totally opposed to subsidies that increase capacity, provided were defining capacity properly. But as for fuel, we dont support the removal of the fuel subsidy, as this would make our fleets unviable. If you remove the fuel subsidy and increased carbon tax to EUR 100 [USD 114] per ton [as proposed by Irish government], then overnight, you go to a situation where fuel is six times what you pay now. European fleets cant survive in that scenario and wed become even more dependent on imports.

SeafoodSource:How do you end overfishing?

ODonoghue: You focus on IUU [illegal, unreported, and unregulated] fishing. Most of the international waters have bodies controlling them. The E.U. has been at the forefront on IUU, [and] the industry has really been behind the E.U. on this, because it affects our markets big-time.

SeafoodSource: Many of those international bodies under-resourced and ineffective in policing IUU fishing. What do you do about that?

ODonoghue: Yes. But thats where the E.U. has to come in and has been coming in to strengthen those bodies. [By] bringing [them] in under the law of the sea.

Photo courtesy ofSen ODonoghue

Originally posted here:

Sen O'Donoghue: Brexit and COVID threatening future of commercial fishing in Ireland - SeafoodSource

Russia considers the UK one of its top Western intelligence targets, according to a long-awaited report into Russian interference in UK politics published by Britains parliament on Tuesday, also criticizing the government for failing to investigate charges that Russia influenced the 2016 Brexit referendum.

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The report, compiled by parliaments powerful Intelligence and Security Committee (ISC), questioned: whether Government took its eye off the ball on Russia, finds that they underestimated the response required to the Russian threat and are still playing catch up.

In a press release summarizing the report, the ISC said: Russian influence in the UK is the new normal. Successive Governments have welcomed the oligarchs and their money with open arms, providing them with a means of recycling illicit finance through the London laundromat, and connections at the highest levels with access to UK companies and political figures.

This, in turn, led to an industry of enablers, including lawyers, accountants, and estate agents who were wittingly or unwittingly de facto agents of the Russian state.

[The] UK is clearly a target for Russian disinformation. While the mechanics of our paper-based voting system are largely sound, we cannot be complacent about a hostile state taking deliberate action with the aim of influencing our democratic processes, the press release warned.

Yet the defence of those democratic processes has appeared something of a hot potato, with no one organisation considering itself to be in the lead, or apparently willing to conduct an assessment of such interference. This must change, it added.

The committee called on social media to take action and remove hostile state material, as well as calling for greater international cooperation, perhaps looking to its US allies: We need other countries to step up with the UK and attach a cost to Putins actions.

The report was blunt about the threat Russia poses to the UK.

The UK is one of Russias top Western intelligence targets: particularly given the UKs firm stance against recent Russian aggression and the UK-led international response to the 2018 Salisbury attack, it said, referring to the poison attack on SergeiSkripal, a former Russian double agent living in the UK, and his daughter.

Russias intelligence services are disproportionately large and powerful and, given the lack of rule of law, are able to act without constraint. The fusion between state, business, and serious and organised crime provides further weight and leverage: Russia is able to pose an all-encompassing security threat which is fuelled by paranoia about the West and a desire to be seen as a resurgent great power, it said.

Russia is a highly capable cyber actor, employing organised crime groups to supplement its cyber skills. Russia carries out malicious cyber activity in order to assert itself aggressively for example, attempting to interfere in other countries elections.

In the face of detailed accusations by Western spy agencies, Russia has denied interfering in other countries elections.

It has been clear for some time that Russia under Putin has moved from potential partner to established threat, fundamentally unwilling to adhere to international law, the report said.

The [London] murder of Alexander Litvinenko in 2006 and the annexation of Crimea in 2014 were stark indicators of this. We, therefore, question whether the Government took its eye off the ball because of its focus on counter-terrorism: it was the opinion of the Committee that until recently the Government had badly underestimated the response required to the Russian threat and is still playing catch up.

Russia poses a tough intelligence challenge and our intelligence agencies must have the tools they need to tackle it.

The report confirmed that there was credible evidence that Russia attempted to influence the 2014 Scottish independence referendum, and that this should have served as a wake-up call.

On the hot topic of Brexit, the report said: There have been widespread allegations that Russia sought to influence voters in the 2016 referendum on the UKs membership of the EU: studies have pointed to the preponderance of pro-Brexit or anti-EU stories on [Russian news outlets] RT and Sputnik, and the use of bots and trolls, as evidence.

The actual impact of such attempts on the result itself would be difficult if not impossible to prove.

The report went on to say that the Government was slow to recognise the existence of the threat.

It was only after Russias hacking of the Democratic National Party in the 2016 US presidential election that the UK understood the threat it faced, when it should have been seen as early as 2014.

As a result, the Government did not take action to protect the UKs process in 2016, the report said. In our view, there must be an analogous assessment of Russian interference in the EU referendum.

The report criticized the illogical intelligence services for their unwillingness to examine Russian interference in the Brexit referendum, in stark contrast with US intelligence and congressional investigations into Russian interference in the 2016 US presidential election.

Stewart Hosie, a member of the committee, said the government did not know if Russia influenced the Brexit referendum because they did not want to know and actively avoided any effort to look into the issue.

There has been no assessment of Russian interference in the EU referendum and this goes back to nobody wanting to touch the issue with a 10-foot pole, he told a news conference.

There should have been an assessment of Russian interference in the EU referendum and there must now be one, and the public must be told the results of that assessment.

Tobias Ellwood, the chair of parliaments Defence Select Committee, told Sky News: Were actually now seeing the new modern battlefield in play. This is what happens subversion, disinformation, interference in elections.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson has been widely criticized for delaying publication of the report, despite it being ready for publication since before the last election.

Shadow Foreign Secretary Lisa Nandy said: It is extraordinary that the prime minister, Boris Johnson, took the political decision last October ahead of the general election to block the publication of this important report that systematically goes through the threat Russia poses to the UKs national security.

The report is very clear that the government has underestimated the response required to Russia and it is imperative we learn the lessons from the mistakes that have been made.

By Karim El-Bar

More:

From Brexit To Scottish Referendum, Russia Aggressively Interfering In UK Domestic Politics - EurAsian Times

PUBLISHED: 13:04 21 July 2020 | UPDATED: 17:01 21 July 2020

Many thought Boris Johnson was given an easy ride when he spoke to the new Times Radio. Picture: PA

PA Wire/PA Images

There have been calls for Boris Johnson to ensure there is a full assessment of Brexit interference into the Brexit vote before the transition period ends.

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Liberal Democrat leadership contender Layla Moran has written to Boris Johnson demanding he set out a clear timeline for the intelligence agencies to publish an assessment into Russian interference in the EU referendum.

The MP insisted that an assessment should be published before the transition period comes to an end on 31 December 2020.

It comes after the Intelligence and Security Committees Russia Report recommended that the UK intelligence community produce a full assessment of potential Russian interference in the EU referendum alongside an unclassified summary.

The committee said it had not been provided with any post-referendum assessment of Russian attempts at interference.

It added: Even if the conclusion of any such assessment were that there was minimal interference, this would nonetheless represent a helpful reassurance to the public that the UKs democratic processes had remained relatively safe.

Downing Street has said that it has seen no evidence of successful interference in the EU Referendum.

But it added that where new information emerges, the government will always consider the most appropriate use of any intelligence it develops or receives, including whether it is appropriate to make this public.Moran said that the governments claim that an assessment is not needed given there is no evidence of interference was putting the cart before the horse.

She said the government cannot expect to find evidence if it has not properly looked for it.

She explained: This damning report shows the government turned a blind eye to potential Russian interference in the EU referendum.

The intelligence services must now carry out a full assessment of this threat to our democratic process as soon as possible.

Boris Johnson should set out a clear timeline for the intelligence services to publish a full this assessment. Given the urgency of the situation and the potential implications for the countrys future, this should be before the end of the transition period.

It would be doubly damaging to our democracy if the UK crashed out with no deal before the extent of Russian interference in the referendum had been properly assessed.

It comes as the Scottish Tories called for an inquiry into Russian interference into the independence referendum.

Layla Morans letter to Boris Johnson

Dear Prime Minister,

The Russia Report published today shows the government has vastly underestimated the threat posed by Russia to our democracy. As recommended, the UK intelligence community must now produce a full assessment of potential Russian interference in the EU referendum and publish an unclassified summary.

The government claims in its response to the Russia Report that is has seen no evidence of successful interference in the EU Referendum and that a retrospective assessment is not necessary. However, this is putting the cart before the horse. The government cannot expect to find evidence if it has not properly looked for it.

I am urging you to now set out a clear timeline for this assessment to take place, and to ensure it happens as soon as possible. Given the major implications for the UK democratic process, this assessment should be produced before the end of the transition period on 31 December 2020. It would be doubly damaging to our democracy if the UK crashed out with no deal before the extent of Russian interference in the referendum had been properly assessed.

The US intelligence community produced an assessment into allegations of Russian interference in the 2016 presidential election within two months. The UK intelligence community should surely be able to produce an assessment within a similar timeline.

If the government are serious about tackling disinformation, they must also get a grip. It is simply unacceptable that no one organisation within government recognises itself as having an overall lead on defending the UKs democratic processes and discourse. I therefore urge you to also introduce a nationwide awareness and education campaign to build resilience to the fake and extreme narratives present in divisive disinformation campaigns.

Yours sincerely,

Layla Moran

Almost four years after its creation The New European goes from strength to strength across print and online, offering a pro-European perspective on Brexit and reporting on the political response to the coronavirus outbreak, climate change and international politics. But we can only rebalance the right wing extremes of much of the UK national press with your support. If you value what we are doing, you can help us by making a contribution to the cost of our journalism.

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Calls for investigation into Russian interference in Brexit before end of transition period - The New European

BORIS Johnson is set to reward Brexit supporters including Sir Ian Botham with life peerages, it has been reported.

It comes as British and EU negotiators have agreed 80 per cent of a Brexit deal.

A report from MakeUK and BDO revealed regions that had previously been Labour constituencies were now at most risk from a no-deal Brexit.

Areas such as Wales, north-east of England, and Yorkshire and Humber face losing out as nearly two-thirds of their exports go to the EU.

Experts warn that along with the coronavirus pandemic, it could be 'fatal' for some companies.

This latest report comes days after a furious exchanges in the House of Commons regarding the future of Brexit - with the Scottish National Party accused by the government of "stirring up division" as they debated an extension to the transition period beyond 2020.

Scottish Government analysis has found ending the transition period in 2020 could remove 3 billion from the Scottish economy in two years on top of the impact of coronavirus.

Meanwhile Home Secretary Priti Patel announced on Thursday the criteria for the points-based immigration system.

She revealed that foreign nationals coming to the UK for work purposes must have 70 points to successfully apply.

Follow our live blog below for all the latest news and updates.

See the rest here:

Brexit latest: Ex-cricketer Ian Botham to be made peer as 80 per cent of deal agreed LIVE updates - The Sun

Russia not only meddled in the Brexit vote, but also in the Scottish Independence referendum

A report on Russian interference into British politics was finally published Tuesday, more than a year after allegations surfaced that Moscow sought to meddle in Britains 2019 general election and following similar claims about its2016 Brexit vote to leave the European Union and a 2014 failed referendum on Scottish independence.

The report published today stated that: the Kremlinhas used espionage and diverse forms of subversion, including cyberattacks, disinformation campaigns and state-sponsored assassinations to undermine British democratic processes and divide alliances such as NATO and the EU.

Russia has been adamant and repeatedly denied any such wrongdoing, and has said that the allegations are completely unfounded.

Although the report was initially given to Boris Johnson last October , he said it couldnt be released until it had been reviewed for national security issues.

The opposition Labour Party has accused Johnsons government of failing to publish the report because it would lead to further questions about links between Russia and the pro-Brexit campaign in the 2016 referendum on European Union membership, he said: Whats in the report that Johnson does not want us to see?

Link:

Russia did meddle in the Brexit, Scottish Independence and the 2019 General Election - Euro Weekly News

PUBLISHED: 08:23 21 July 2020 | UPDATED: 16:56 21 July 2020

Results of a vote is announced in the House of Commons. Photograph: Jessica Taylor/House of Commons.

HOC/JESSICA TAYLOR

An amendment to the governments Trade Bill intended to protect the NHS and publicly funded health and care services from any form of control from outside the UK has been defeated.

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The government insisted UK law offers such protections and any changes would have to come before parliament.

But for Labour, shadow international trade minister Bill Esterson said the lack of scrutiny threatens to leave the health service wide open to pharmaceutical giants.

MPs voted by 340 votes to 251 against supporting the amendment.

We Own It campaigns officer Ellen Lees said: Its frankly sickening that at a time when were more reliant on our NHS than ever before, the government has steamrollered through parliament a Trade Bill that offers absolutely no protection for our treasured NHS. Were now at risk of higher drug prices, private companies being able to sue the government if it tries to limit their ability to profit from our healthcare, and Donald Trump getting his hands on our NHS.

Worse still, parliament wont even get to have a say in any future trade deals - meaning our NHS could be offered up on a silver platter to the highest bidder, and we wouldnt know a thing about it before a trade deal is signed and sealed.

This government promised to take back control but theyre doing the opposite. They promised to keep the NHS off the table. Theyre doing the opposite. Now its time for the House of Lords to step up to the plate and fight back against this totally undemocratic power grab from the government.

These MPs voted against the proposal:

Ada, Nigel

Afriyie, Adam

Ahmad Khan, Ian

Aiken, Nickie

Aldous, Peter

Allan, Lucy

Amess, Sir David

Anderson, Lee

Anderson, Stuart

Ansell, Caroline

Argar, Edward

Atherton, Sarah

Atkins, Victoria

Bacon, Gareth

Bacon, Richard

Badenoch, Kemi

Bailey, Shaun

Baillie, Siobhan

Baker, Duncan

Baker, Steve

Baldwin, Harriett

Baron, John

Baynes, Simon

Bell, Aaron

Benton, Scott

Beresford, Sir Paul

Berry, Jake

Bhatti, Saqib

Blackman, Bob

Blunt, Crispin

Bone, Peter

Bowie, Andrew

Bradley, Ben

Bradley, Karen

Braverman, Suella

Brereton, Jack

Bridgen, Andrew

Brine, Steve

Bristow, Paul

Britcliffe, Sara

Brokenshire, James

Browne, Anthony

Bruce, Fiona

Buchan, Felicity

Buckland, Robert

Burghart, Alex

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Burns, Conor

Butler, Rob

Cairns, Alun

Carter, Andy

Cartlidge, James

Cash, Sir William

Cates, Miriam

Caulfield, Maria

Chalk, Alex

Chishti, Rehman

Churchill, Jo

Clark, Greg

Clarke, Simon

Clarke, Theo

Clarke-Smith, Brendan

Clarkson, Chris

Cleverly, James

Clifton-Brown, Sir Geoffrey

Coffey, Dr Thrse

Colburn, Elliot

Collins, Damian

Costa, Alberto

Courts, Robert

Coutinho, Claire

Cox, Geoffrey

Crabb, Stephen

Crosbie, Virginia

Crouch, Tracey

Daly, James

Davies, David T. C.

Davies, Gareth

Davies, Dr James

Davies, Mi

Davis, David

Davison, Dehenna

Dinenage, Caroline

Dines, Miss Sarah

Djanogly, Jonathan

Read more here:

These MPs just voted against protecting the NHS from a post-Brexit trade deal - The New European

Westminster has ruled out holding an investigation into meddling by Russia in the EUreferendum.

In a response published this morning, timedto coincide with the publication of a long-awaited report into Russian interference in UK democracy, the Government said an investigation is "not necessary".

It comes despite harsh criticism by the Intelligenceand Security committee (ISC) members that government officials ignored prior warnings,and decided actively to ignore the threat posed by Russia in the EU vote.

Boris Johnson'sofficial response to the Russia report states: "We have seen no evidence of successful interference in the EU Referendum.

"The Intelligence and Security Agencies produce and contribute to regular assessments of the threat posed by Hostile State Activity, including around potential interference in UK democratic processes.

READ MORE:Nicola Sturgeon accuses UK Government of 'negligence' over Russia

"We keep such assessments under review and, where necessary, update them in response to new intelligence, including during democratic events such as elections and referendums.

"Where new information emerges, the Government will always consider the most appropriate use of any intelligence it develops or receives, including whether it is appropriate to make this public.

"Given this long standing approach, a retrospective assessment of the EU Referendum is not necessary."

The decision has sparked criticism by SNP MP Stewart McDonald, the party's defence spokesman, who said:"It is clear that the Tory government deliberately failed in its duty to assess the level of Russian interference in the EU referendum, and the potential impact that had on the Brexit result - seemingly because it didn't want to know the answers. An independent inquiry must now happen.

Despite the growing threat posed by sophisticated Russian misinformation campaigns, the report found that the UK government only belatedly realised the level of threat after the DNC hack and leak operation. The Tory government clearly took its eye off the ball.

"During the election campaign, Boris Johnson claimed 'There is absolutely no evidence that I know of to show any interference in any British electoral event'. The report which the Prime Minister had already read at that point - now makes clear that this is because the Tory government was not looking for it. This botched attempt at a cover up by Downing Street has been laid bare by the committees findings.

READ MORE:Committee asked if Alex Salmond is 'defacto agent' of Russia

"The UK government must now work withour international allies and set out how it will get a grip of Russian interference. Any narrow party-political attempt to use this report to stymie democracy intheUK would be unacceptable.We need a sober reflection from government and parliament, and a thoughtful way ahead. The public would expect nothing less."

The relationship between Downing Street and the ISC has been strained since former Conservative MP Julian Lewis was elected as chairman last week, after receiving votes from opposition politicians. The Prime Minister had nominated MP Chris Grayling for the post, and after his defeat Mr Lewis was ejected from the Tories.

During this morning's press conference, Mr Lewis said: "This committee has been subjected to unprecedented delay and dislocation.

"This really must never happen again. As soon as normal relations are restored between this committee and the government, the better it will be for all concerned.

"Yet that prospect has not been helped by the Government refusing to tell us what was in the written ministerial statement about this Russia Report, which the government chose to table in the commons at 10.30 this morning to clash with the start of this event.

"Maybe I'm being unfair to them. Maybe they have another plan, maybe they're going to add to their written ministerial statement by making an oral statement on this subject perhaps tomorrow so that the Commons can have its say and ask it's questions. That would be a very positive sign. Let's hope it happens."

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Westminster rules out probe into Russian meddling in Brexit - HeraldScotland