Daily Archives: March 21, 2021

Fridays session of the Delaware Great Decisions Series, which will take place virtually at noon, will focus on Brexit and the European Union.

Yannis Stivachtis, a political science professor who holds the Jean Monnet chair position at Virginia Tech, will present Fridays program.

Stivachtis received his masters degree along with a Ph.D. in politics: international relations and strategic studies at Lancaster University in the United Kingdom. His bachelors degree with distinction was completed at Panteion University in Greece. His broad range of research includes a focus on the European Union, European organizations, and a study of the international system/society in Europe.

What is Brexit? What is behind it? Stivachtis will offer a presentation on a number of dimensions of the Brexit process, including explaining the referendum results and the forces and factions at work that brought about this movement.

Stivachtis will address various questions surrounding the topic: Was this a good decision, the right thing to do? Was the vote to leave a heroic act as some have suggested, or does this outcome not bode well for the future of Great Britain and Europe?

The community is invited to join the online Zoom discussions by registering in advance at https://delawaregreatdecisions.com.

The Great Decisions program, a free community discussion series, is designed to encourage debate and discussion of the role of the United States in world affairs. The program provides materials that help people reach informed opinions on issues and encourages them to participate in the foreign-policy process.

Stivachtis

Information for this story was provided by Rev. Ward Skip Cornett, who serves as chair of the Delaware Great Decisions program.

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Professor to examine ins, outs of Brexit - Delaware Gazette

Robert Peston will appear on ITV's All Star Musicals tonight, a far cry from his day job as ITV's Political Editor. He'll join Ranj Singh, Rob Rinder, Barney Walsh, Jessica Hynes and Luisa Bradshaw-White to perform songs from hit musicals such as Chicago, The Greatest Showman, Guys and Dolls and Beauty & the Beast. They will be trying to impress musical theatre stars Elaine Paige, Samantha Barks and Trevor Dion Nicholas, as well as the viewing audience

Mr Peston has made his name covering politics and economics for major broadcasters including ITV as well as the BBC.

Despite having previously worked for the BBC, he was critical of its Brexit coverage during the 2016 referendum on EU membership.

In October 2018, Mr Peston reflected on the broadcaster's coverage, saying it hadn't always been impartial.

He told the Cheltenham Literature Festival: The problem with the BBC, during the campaign, it put people on with diametrically opposed views and didnt give their viewers and listeners any help in assessing which one was the loony and which one was the genius.

I do think that they went through a period of just not being confident enough.

"Impartial journalism is not giving equal airtime to two people one of whom says the world is flat and the other one says the world is round.

"That is not balanced, impartial journalism.

Mr Peston had repeatedly said on air that the UK economy would be worse off as a result of Brexit.

The journalist also reflected on the moment when the Vote Leave campaign sent a complaint to Ofcom accusing ITV of pro-Remain bias.

READ MORE:Brexit fury: EU fined UK 2.4billion in fraud row

He said on air that the UK would be "not massively poorer. I thought the Project Fear bit of the Governments campaign was overdone. But poorer".

The journalist has covered economics for years, and also offered his analysis on the future of the eurozone.

In Europe, Peston said there is a lack of political and sustainable union between countries, especially Germany and France. He said: "As long as there is that mistrust then the Eurozone will continue to struggle."

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How Robert Peston condemned BBC as 'not impartial' on Brexit - 'Didn't help viewers' - Express

Sadiq Khan will emphasise his record standing up to Donald Trump and a "rising tide of nationalism" as part of his strategy to stay in City Hall, in a break with Labours national positioning.

The Labour mayor of London is planning to explicitly target Liberal Democrat voters to take him over the line as a new poll shows he is set to win over a substantial chunk of their 2019 support.

The approach, tailored for the capital, breaks with the one set by Labour leader Keir Starmer at national level which has sought to emphasise patriotism in an appeal to more conservative voters.

Mr Khan kicked off his campaign, which will officially begin on Monday, by telling The Independent he was in a "two-horse race" with the Tories and that voting Lib Dem could risk him losing.

But his suggestion sparked anger in the Liberal Democrat campaign, with the party's candidate Luisa Porritt accusing the Mayor of "engaging in fake news tactics" around the voting system.

Both parties are preparing to set out their stalls ahead of the formal start of the mayoral contest on Monday. The latest survey by Redfield and Winton Strategies showed Mr Khan taking 37 per cent of the 2019 Lib Dem vote and Ms Porritt taking 35 per cent though such poll crossbreaks have a wider margin of error.

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Inside Politics newsletterThe latest news on Brexit, politics and beyond direct to your inbox every weekday

The Mayor Mr Khan said: This election is a two-horse race between me and the Tory candidate who simply doesnt share Londoners values.

Im calling on people who have previously voted Liberal Democrat and who love London to lend me their vote. A vote for any candidate other than me will just increase the chance that the Tory candidate will win.

"I have always fearlessly stood up for London's values - whether on immigration, Brexit or the environment - and will continue to do so if I'm re-elected on 6 May."

But Luisa Porritt, the Liberal Democrat candidate, said the capital's voting system meant Londoners didn't need to vote tactically.

Under the so-called "supplementary vote system" voters can choose a first and a second choice. If their first choice candidate does not make it to the top two, their vote moves to their second choice.

"It is an utter disgrace that a so-called progressive Mayor is engaging in fake news tactics to scare the public into voting for him in this election," Ms Porritt told The Independent.

"Londoners backed a better voting system for our elections so they didnt have to engage in this type of negative tactical voting. At a time when the Tories are threatening to abolish our proportional system, youd think progressives would be out to defend it - not pretend it doesnt exist.

"With the Conservative candidate falling further and further behind, Londoners are looking for a serious and progressive challenger to the Mayor. Someone who will hold him to account for his poor record and has a plan to take London forward. I am that challenger."

Mr Khan's team has prepared campaign material specifically targeted at Lib Dem voters, such a video interviews, stressing his opposition Brexit and spats with Donald Trump.

In one video, a former Lib Dem voter named Dylan phrases Mr Khan's record having "stood up for an open London against Trump and a rising tide of nationalism" where people can "fulfil their potential no matter where they come from, who they love, what colour their skin is or their religion".

A parakeet eats a cherry blossom in St. James's Park, London, Britain

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Highland cattle lock horns at the National Trusts Wicken Fen Nature Reserve in Cambridgeshire

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A cleaner uses a fogging machine to clean a train carriage early in the morning

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A giant 60-metre wide sand portrait of 12-year-old Ansha from Ethiopia created by WaterAid on Whitby Beach in Yorkshire. The image of the young girl, who spends hours each day collecting dirty water from a river, was created to illustrate how climate change threatens water access for world's poorest

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Five kayaks, each reflecting the shape of a human bone, form Osteoclast (I do not know how I came to be on board this ship, this navel of my ark) (2021), a sculpture by Teresa Solar, positioned outside Exchange Flags, it's one of the outdoor exhibits in the 11th edition of Liverpool Biennial which opens March 20, 2021, and features a series of outdoor sculpture, sonic and digital commissions by nine different artists. PA Photo. Picture date: Monday March 15, 2021. PA Photo. To align with government guidelines, the second 'inside' chapter will launch the full festival of exhibitions and events hosted by key venues throughout the city in late Spring

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Protesters calling for greater public safety for women after the death of Sarah Everard, against the police handling of a gathering on Clapham Common in Sarah Everard's honour and against a proposed law that would give police more powers to intervene on protests hold up their mobile phones with their torches illuminated in Parliament Square in central London

AFP via Getty

A well-wisher places flowers at a band-stand where a planned vigil in honour of murder victim Sarah Everard was cancelled after police outlawed it due to Covid-19 restrictions, on Clapham Common, south London

AFP via Getty Images

Angela Rayner, deputy leader of the Labour Party, and Jonathan Ashworth, Shadow Health Secretary, launch a poster in central London, criticising the government's recommendation of a 1 percent NHS pay proposal, following the party's campaign launch on Thursday for the local and mayoral elections in May

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Waves crash over the harbour wall in Newhaven, southern England

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Officers from the Metropolitan Police search woodland near to Great Chart Golf and Leisure in Ashford, Kent

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A vertical mulcher machine is used to clear trees during the restoration of an ancient bog near Kielder Water in Northumberland. The ancient habitat, known as the Border Mires, is under threat from encroaching trees which are being removed as part of a 50 year old environmental project to protect the Border Mires in Northumberland

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Students take Lateral Flow Tests for coronavirus at the Jewellery Quarter Academy in Birmingham in the West Midlands, as pupils in England return to school for the first time in two months as part of the first stage of lockdown easing

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Nurses and NHS workers from the campaign group NHS Workers Say No, and Unites Guys and St Thomas Hospital Union branch, hold a socially distanced protest outside Downing Street in London over the proposed 1% pay rise from the Government

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Rangers fans outside the stadium after the Scottish Premiership match at Ibrox Stadium, Glasgow

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People go for a walk at The Dream a sculptor in Sutton Manor, St Helens, Merseyside, on a clear Spring day

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Health Secretary Matt Hancock during a visit to the Centre for Virus Research at Glasgow University in Glasgow

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Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rishi Sunak outside 11 Downing Street, London, before heading to the House of Commons to deliver his Budget

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A train rounds the coast and heads towards the Carbis Bay Estate hotel and beach, which is set to be the main venue for the upcoming G7 summit

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Newborn lambs in a field at A J Thompson & Sons farm on the Romney Marsh near Lydd in Kent on the first day of meteorological spring

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People walking on the beach in Scarborough, North Yorkshire

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The coffin of Captain Tom Moore is being carried members of the Armed Forces at Bedford Crematorium in Bedford

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A dog stands on rocks as the sun rises behind it at New Brighton beach, Wirral

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Shadow chancellor Anneliese Dodds delivers a pre-Budget speech to the Institute of Global Prosperity at Labour Party headquarters in London

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Britain's Health Secretary Matt Hancock looks on outside Downing Street in London, Britain

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Two surfers make their way into the sea off of Boscombe beach in Dorset

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Crocuses bloom outside Trinity College in Cambridge

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Street art adorns many of the streets and walls around the Digbeth area of Birmingham

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Parts of Callander in Stirlingshire flooded after the River Teith burst its banks

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The sun rises over St Mary's Lighthouse, Northumberland

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Cars drive along the A1101 in Welney, Norfolk, which is passable again after two months submerged by floodwater

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Professor Green announces Tideways new 25km Super Sewer is Heading East, marking a major stage in the construction of the tunnel, as two giant Tunnel Boring Machines link up to break through into Bermondsey and commence tunnelling towards East London. Once completed, the sewer system will prevent millions of tonnes of raw sewage entering the Thames

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man holds up signs reading I LOST MY JOB!! and BORIS, WHO IS GOING TO PAY THIS BILL? I DONT HAVE ANY MONEY TO PAY MY CREDIT CARD at the window of his hotel room at the Radisson Blu hotel in London

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Passengers arriving at Heathrow's Terminal 5 are escorted by security personal to buses. From today, people arriving from 33 "red list" countries, including South Africa and the United Arab Emirates, must isolate in hotels rooms for 10 days at their own expense. The policy was announced late last month in response to the emergence of new variants of the novel coronavirus that are more resistant to existing vaccines.

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People play ice hockey on frozen flooded fields near Ely in Cambridgeshire

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Prime Minister Boris Johnson, wearing a face mask, accompanied by Sarah Rose (left), MD of the Northumbria healthcare PPE manufacturing hub in Seaton Delaval

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Lanterns hang across the street to celebrate the Chinese Lunar New Year which marks the Year of the Ox, in Chinatown, central London, during England's third national lockdown to curb the spread of coronavirus.

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European Commission Vice-President Maros Sefcovic at London's St Pancras Station after arriving in the UK ahead of talks with Cabinet Office Minister Michael Gove on the Northern Ireland protocol.

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A frozen road sign and hedgerow are covered in icicles, as Storm Darcy affects large parts of the country, in Shenley, Hertfordshire

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People walk up Gardner street in Glasgow as snow blankets the city

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Drifting snow covers a car in Harwood, County Durham

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People walk through the snow in Knole Park in Sevenoaks

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Sadiq Khan to emphasise opposition to Trump and Brexit in bid to target Lib Dem voters - The Independent

On the 4 March 2021, the UKs Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) updated its website with further guidance on the Temporary Permissions Regime (TPR), which came into force at the end of the transition period on 31 December 2020. The guidance is relevant for EU incoming firms that made an application under the TPR in 2020 to continue operating on a cross-border basis in the UK and who are currently carrying out their UK business or marketing on this basis.

As detailed in our previous note from November 2020, the UK established the TPR to enable firms and funds that relied on passporting into the UK under European legislation, to continue operating in the UK post-Brexit, providing those firms with limited temporary relief to operate without being authorised by the FCA.

The FCA is now contacting firms in the TPR and providing confirmation of the firms landing slot (i.e., the opening and closing dates) during which firms have, to either apply for a UK authorisation or cancel their temporary permission and then cease any regulated activity in the UK.

Application for full authorisation

Firms that have received a landing slot are advised to review the FCAs guidance on landing slots for information on next steps for applications for FCA authorisation.

The FCA emphasises that applications for authorisation should not be submitted before the opening date and should be submitted no later than the closing date and specifies that the FCA reserves its right to disregard and potentially destroy applications received outside of the landing slot and in addition, may cancel the applicants temporary permission, if applications are not received in time.

Cancelling temporary permission

Firms that choose not to submit an application and decide to cancel their temporary permission are provided with guidance on cancelling a temporary permission.

Firms should consider their circumstances when ceasing activities in the UK, as they might be eligible to move into the supervised run-off (SRO) mechanism, which is part of theFinancial Services Contracts Regime, in situations where there is remaining UK business to run off.

Supervision under the TPR

The FCAs third guidance explains how firms will continue to be supervised, as long as they are operating under the TPR. In most instances, firms in the TPR are supervised in the same way as other authorised firms, though matters that were reserved to the home state regulator before the end of the transition period, can be fulfilled by substituted compliance and may therefore not require reporting to the FCA.

Next steps

Firms in the TPR should now start to assess their UK strategy ahead of being provided with their landing slots and should review whether they require a UK authorisation or whether there are alternative approaches available, which will ensure they can serve UK clients or market their products to UK investors.

Where FCA authorisation is likely, firms should bear in mind timing to prepare the application and then be granted the authorisation can take between 6-9 months with delays currently expected due to volume of applications and challenges to processing times due to Covid-19. If firms require additional time to prepare, the FCA may grant a change of the opening and/or closing date.

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Brexit: FCA guidance for firms operating in the UK under the Temporary Permissions Regime - JD Supra

Following Brexit, EU competition law continued to apply in the United Kingdom until 31 December 2020 as part of an agreed Transition Period. In this LawFlash, we summarise how the end of the Transition Period is likely to impact the enforcement of competition law in the United Kingdom going forward, the extent to which UK competition agencies and courts are free to diverge from EU principles and case law, and our initial thoughts on the future landscape of competition law in the United Kingdom.

The United Kingdom (UK) exited the European Union (EU) on 31 January 2020. Thereafter until 11:00 pm on 31 December 2020, there was a Transition Period. Pursuant to the UK-EU Withdrawal Agreement 2019, the United Kingdom continued to apply and be subject to EU competition law throughout the Transition Period.

On 24 December 2020, the EU and the UK reached a Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA), which defines the trading relationship between the EU and the UK following the end of the Transition Period, including the arrangements in relation to competition law and antitrust.

It is fair to say that the TCA does not set out much detail with regard to competition law enforcement. Further information in that regard is to be found in the UK Withdrawal Agreement,[1] the UK Withdrawal Act,[2] the Competition SI[3], and the Implementation SI.[4]

In this note we set out the main takeaways on the effect of Brexit on competition law, together with our initial observations as a result of our experience with regard to a number of ongoing investigations by the UK antitrust authority, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA).

Article 101 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union (TFEU), like its functional equivalent, Chapter I of the UK Competition Act 1998 (CA98), prohibits arrangements between businesses that have as their object or effect the restriction, distortion, or prevention of competition between EU member states (or in the United Kingdom in the case of Chapter I CA98), unless they can be shown to give rise to benefits to consumers that outweigh any restrictions of competition. Such anticompetitive arrangements can arise directly or indirectly between competitors, and/or between companies at different levels of the supply chain, such as between a supplier and its customers.

Article 102 TFEU, like Chapter II CA98, prohibits the abuse of a dominant position. Dominance is generally defined as a firms ability to behave independently of its competitors, customers, suppliers and, ultimately, final consumers. In broad terms, a business may be considered to have market dominance if it has a market share of around 40% or more in a relevant market. While dominance is not an infringement, it is prohibited for a firm to abuse its dominance. Companies found to have breached Articles 101 or 102 TFEU and/or Chapter I or Chapter II CA98 are liable for fines of up to 10% of their worldwide group turnover, while in the UK individuals may incur personal liability which may be civil or criminal in nature.[5]

The TCA aims to provide a level playing field in the way that UK and EU businesses are regulated. In respect of competition law, the TCA enshrines a commitment by the UK and the EU to maintain effective competition laws that will address anticompetitive agreements and abuses of a dominant position, and to ensure the enforcement of competition law by independent authorities in a transparent, fair and non-discriminatory manner.

The TCA also emphasises the importance of co-operation with regard to developments in competition policy and enforcement activities. In practice, this means that the European Commission (Commission) and the national competition authorities of EU member states may exchange information with the CMA to the extent this is permitted by law, and vice versa. This is important since, for example, the Commission will no longer have jurisdiction to conduct dawn raids in the UK or to request the CMA to do so on its behalf with regard to suspected Article 101 or Article 102 infringements.

Since 1 January 2021, the UK antitrust agencies, the CMA and concurrent regulators, are no longer able to investigate and enforce Article 101 and Article 102 TFEU.

That being said, Articles 101 and 102 will continue to apply to conduct by UK firms that is implemented or produces effects within the EU, which may also include UK conduct to the extent that it produces effects within the EU, as has traditionally been the case with regard to third states (that is, non-EU member states). Since 1 January 2021, such conduct will be investigated and enforced by the Commission or the national competition authorities of EU member states.

Furthermore, the Commission will continue to have competence over the UK elements of Continued Competence Cases, that is, cases that were initiated but not concluded by the Commission before the end of the Transition Period.

In summary, broadly the following will apply:

We expect the CMA to be very active in antitrust enforcement following the UKs break from the EU. Whilst in the past the CMA (like all national EU antitrust agencies) had to take the back seat where the Commission took up an investigation, it is now able to run an investigation under UK competition law in parallel with an investigation by the Commission and to focus on the UK market specifically.

Parallel investigations will inevitably give rise to significant additional costs, delays, and complexity for businesses, despite the EUs and UKs commitment in the TCA that their respective competition authorities will cooperate and coordinate where this is permissible by law. The risk of parallel investigations will require firms to think about their strategic options. In relation to leniency applications, it should be borne in mind that the protection afforded by applications to the Commission will not extend to fines, prosecution, or disqualification proceedings in relation to a UK investigation and vice versa.

The CMA is also free to pursue its own agenda as it seeks to lead the way in terms of key antitrust reforms, including in the digital sector. The impetus for digital reform in the UK has resulted in the CMA proposing, among other things, the establishment of an enforceable code of conduct to govern the behaviour of platforms that are designated as having Strategic Market Status (a new and novel concept) and novel approaches with regard to algorithms (see our recent CMA Paper and Consultation on Impact of Algorithms on Competition and Consumer Welfare and below). In this context, we may also see the CMA leaving behind traditional enforcement methods and making more use of market tools to intervene against big tech companies.

Prior to the end of the Transition Period, Section 60 CA98 provided that UK competition authorities and courts must, as far as possible, interpret UK competition law in a manner that is consistent with EU competition law, including the case law of the European courts, and must have regard to any decision or statement of the Commission.

Section 60 CA98 has now been revoked and replaced with a new Section 60A. Section 60A applies to all cases from 31 December 2020 onwards, including ongoing CMA investigations and court cases that were live on 31 December 2020 relating to conduct before 1 January 2021.

The CMA, concurrent regulators and the English courts are no longer required to interpret UK competition law consistently with the case law of the European Court, which is no longer binding. New EU case law (reached after 31 December 2020) is not binding on the UK antitrust agencies or the English courts.

However, Section 60A CA98 provides that the UK antitrust agencies and the English courts are required to ensure consistency with EU competition case law and the Commissions decisions reached prior to 1 January 2021, unless it is considered to be appropriate not to do so in the light of certain specified circumstances. In paragraph 4.22 of the CMA guidance on its Functions after the End of the Transition Period (CMA125) of 20 December 2020 (Guidance), the CMA points to Section 60A CA98 which sets out that such a departure from established EU case law may be appropriate in the light of the following factors:

In January 2021, the CMA began contacting companies that were under investigation by the CMA to notify them that, following the end of the Transition Period, EU law no longer applies in the UK and the CMA will continue its investigation of suspected infringements on the basis of UK competition law in relation to conduct that took place both before and after 31 December 2020. In its approaches, the CMA has been keen to note that, whilst Section 60A CA98 requires the CMA to act with a view to ensuring that there is no inconsistency with pre-existing EU case law and principles, the CMA is nonetheless allowed to depart from such case law and principles where it considers that it is appropriate to do so.

This may be an indication that the CMA is setting the ground for a divergence from established EU case law and decisional precedent even with regard to conduct and investigations preceding 1 January 2021, and that it will seek to rely on Section 60A CA98 in order to do so.

For example, in light of statements by the CMA to date, it is possible the CMA will seek to diverge from EU precedent with regard to procedure and rights of defence. It is also possible that the CMA will seek to diverge from established EU precedent with regard to the substantive analysis of anticompetitive agreements or abuse of dominance. If that were to be the case, we would expect a very litigious future, with companies appealing CMA decisions. Such an approach by the CMA would be in line with its increasing reliance in a number of ongoing investigations on its so-called margin of appreciation as a means of moving away from established case law and from established economic and legal principles that may run counter to the CMAs analysis. Furthermore, since the English courts will no longer have the ability to refer questions of interpretation of EU law to the European courts (which is currently a key component driving consistency in competition law interpretation), a gradual divergence over time becomes an even more likely prospect.

As we discussed in our recent LawFlash on the CMA Paper and Consultation on Impact of Algorithms on Competition and Consumer Welfare, the CMA may have given us a flavour of things to come in its recent Algorithms research paper. For example, with regard to abusive conduct, in a departure from established competition law, the CMA suggests that a firm may abuse its dominance unknowingly and unintentionally. With regard to anticompetitive agreements, the CMA puts forward a novel proposition on what it describes as autonomous tacit collusion, where complex and sophisticated pricing algorithms learn independently to tacitly collude, without having been instructed to suppress competition by human operators. The CMA says that this could give rise to a situation in which firms unwittingly and unintentionally collude on the market. The CMAs suggestion with regard to so-called autonomous tacit collusion is a material departure from the established Chapter I CA98/ Article 101 TFEU case law and give rise to significant questions on the meaning of collusion. As we said in our LawFlash, a departure from the requirement to show a meeting of minds in order to find the existence of anticompetitive collusion would turn competition law on its head.

[5] Company directors may be disqualified from serving as a director for a period of up to 15 years, whilst the participation in a hardcore criminal cartel (namely, bid-rigging, price fixing, market or customer sharing, or limitation of output or supply) may also lead to the imposition of a five-year prison sentence, unlimited fines, or both for the individual.

[6] As described below, claimants will be able to bring actions, including damages claims in the English courts with regard to Commission infringement decisions issued reached before 1 January 2021.

[7] However, while adherence to any commitments entered into by parties to the investigation will continue to be monitored by the Commission, any UK aspects of their commitments may be transferred to the CMA.

[8] That is, where the Commission issued a Statement of Objections or a request for the parties under investigation to express their interest in engaging in settlement discussions.

[9] As described below, claimants will be able to bring actions, including damages claims in the English courts with regard to Commission infringement decisions that may be reached after 31 December 2020 in respect of Continued Competence Cases (including cases that have not yet exhausted the appeals process).

[10] However, the Commission may transfer the UK aspects of any commitments to the CMA.

[11] The CMA may have been investigating the relevant conduct both under EU and UK competition law.

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The Impact of Brexit on UK Competition Law Cases - JD Supra

Nationalism, independence and the constitution have dominated political debate for years. There is a febrile unease with the status quo and a sneaking but growing suspicion that neighbours are getting things easier, enjoying life a little more. Change is indubitably in the airin England.

The rise of English nationalism, behind and beyond Brexit, is an increasingly potent political force south of the border and, experts suspect, could easily play as pivotal a role in the future of the United Kingdom as Scottish, Welsh or Irish nationalism.

Academic Richard Wyn Jones says English nationalism has two faces: It combines a sense of English identity and a sense that English identity isnt properly recognised within the UK, and a Scottish-focused grievance that England is actually unfairly treated within the UK in some ways.

It combines that focus on England, with a fierce pride in Britains past and a commitment to a particular vision of Britains place in the world, which is a really big role.

That world view was particularly challenged by the perceived intrusion of the European Union in British public life. European membership was seen as undermining the traditional English sense of where sovereignty should reside and how we should be legitimately governed, says Wyn Jones.

So European membership led to a significant backlash, especially amongst those people who feel English. Sstatistically there was a very obvious correlation between how English you felt and how Eurosceptic you were.

This English nationalism threatens the Union in two ways, according to Wyn Jones. It brought about the Brexit referendum, which, through its geographically different results, has led to Scotland and Northern Ireland leaving the EU against the wishes of the majority of its citizens, reviving the cause of Scottish independence after the 2014 referendum defeat. But, after that referendum, English nationalism put completing Brexit above all else.

Wyn Jones, who is director of Cardiff Universitys Wales Governance Centre and Dean of Public Affairs, adds: English Eurosceptics prioritise leaving the EU, and have prioritised leaving the EU, above maintaining the UK Union, which is why we have the situation where there is now an economic border in the Irish sea between Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

That is a very, very obvious example of Brexit being valued above the future of the UK and we know that one of the really striking things about attitudes in England is that the more English you feel the more relaxed you are about the territorial integrity of the state.

In a new book, Englishness: The Political Force Transforming Britain, Wyn Jones and Edinburgh academic Ailsa Henderson examine the impact of English nationalism on the United Kingdom and reveal polling showing a rising number of English voters are relaxed about independence for all.

He said: Actually, there isnt majority support for Northern Ireland remaining in the UK in England, but even in terms of Scotland and Wales there is a significant minority in England, and that significant minority is found amongst those people who feel most English, who are actually quite relaxed about those countries becoming independent.

While English nationalists dont reject Britains nations remaining as one state, they see a future very much on Englands terms.

The vision of what the UK would look like is one where Scotland and Wales remain in the Union, but in Scotlands case with substantially less public spending, with very little voice in terms of the way the UK is run. So, effectively, Scotland would be largely autonomous but largely without influence in terms with the way that the UK is run, that will be fine for the English, but I am not sure it would be fine for the Scots.

The key moment in the rise of English nationalism was the 2015 General Election when, Wyn Jones says, the Conservative Party deliberately played to English voters concerns.

The way they won that election was very, very clearly by raising the bogey of Scottish influence well, you could say SNP influence over a Labour minority government but, as we show in the book, the people involved in putting the campaign together were very, very well aware that they were tapping into deeper English resentment and grievance, it was not just about the SNP.

What they did in 2015 quite deliberately has triggered all kinds of tensions that threaten the future of the UK.

Wyn Jones concludes the future of the United Kingdom is very uncertain, and has doubts about the likely success of any of the strategies currently suggested by unionists to save it, including the recently announced relocation of 1,000 civil service jobs from Whitehall to Scotland.

Britains political landscape has changed, he says, and English nationalism is here to stay.

Theres been a tendency to think of nationalism, national identity, as only being relevant when you think about northern Ireland, or Scotland, or Wales, he says.

Actually what you have got everywhere across the UK is this kind of complicated web of national identities which intersect with values, world views. And, so, if you want to understand British politics, you have to talk about England in a way that is very unfamiliar to us.

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Brexit was put above all else: Experts chart the rise of English nationalism and why it is putting strain on a Union already under stress - The Sunday...

LONDON (ICIS)--Chemicals exports from EU countries to the rest of the world fell in January, in line with overall trade in goods which took a hit from renewed measures to slow down the spread of the pandemic, said Eurostat on Thursday.

Imports of chemicals into the EU took a hit of 16.5%, although the overall volumes of imports were around half of those in exports.

Eurostat also confirmed how the UKs withdrawal from the EUs Single Market on 1 January affected trade in goods between the two areas, in line with figures published by the UKs national statistics body earlier this week.

The EU has traditionally been a net exporter of chemicals, with chemicals output in several countries within the bloc notably Germany being key in the global chemicals trade.

Several EU countries, including Germany or France, were in January under lockdown measures as the pandemic was spreading again; those lockdown measures remain in place, while as of this week Italy has also gone into stricter measures.

Chemicals output also took a hit in January across the 27-country, although overall industrial output managed to keep in the positive, said Eurostat earlier in March.

The fall in chemicals exports was the smallest among chemicals-intensive manufacturing sectors like machinery and vehicles production, which fell more than 12%.

The trade surplus for the EU's chemicals industry widened in January, to 17.1bn, as imports fell by a larger percentage than exports.

BREXIT DEAL IMPACTEurostat also confirmed the sharp fall in UK-EU trade in goods as the Brexit trade deal kicked off on 1 January, mirroring statistics published by the UKs Office for National Statistics (ONS).

The sharp falls, however, should be taking with a pinch of salt, according to analysts, as one month would not be representative, especially as previous stocking and global logistics woes are taken into consideration.

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EU chemicals exports, imports fall in January on renewed lockdowns, Brexit impact - ICIS