Category Archives: Brexit

The protocol was part of the Brexit settlement Prime Minister Boris Johnson negotiated with the EU, but London has repeatedly said it must be rewritten less than a year after taking force due to the barriers businesses face when importing British goods into Northern Ireland.

Irelands foreign minister Simon Coveney on Twitter asked: Real Q: Does UKG (UK Government) actually want an agreed way forward or a further breakdown in relations?

That drew a rebuke from Frost: I prefer not to do negotiations by twitter, but since @simoncoveney has begun the process...

Frost dismissed Coveneys argument that he was making new demands, saying that Britains concerns over the European Court of Justices role in the process were set out three months earlier.

The problem is that too few people seem to have listened, Frost said.

On Saturday, Frost had released extracts of a speech he is due to make this week again calling for change and signalling a desire to free the protocol from the oversight of European judges.

Responding to that, Irelands Coveney said Britain had created a new red line barrier to progress that it knows the EU cannot move on.

The row comes at the start of an important week in the long- running debate over how to manage the flow of goods between Britain, Northern Ireland and the EU.

The European Commission is expected to present new measures on Wednesday to smooth trade, while stopping short of the significant change London is demanding to the protocol.

The measures are designed to ease customs controls, clearance of meat, dairy and other food products and the flow of medicines to Northern Ireland from the UK mainland.

The Commission will also set out plans to engage more with politicians, business people and others in Northern Ireland.

The proposals could enable supermarkets to supply their Northern Irish stores with sausages and other chilled meat products from Britain that are banned from entry into the European Union - and so in theory into Northern Ireland.

While remaining part of the United Kingdom, Northern Ireland has stayed in the EUs single market for goods, meaning exports to the rest of the bloc face no customs checks, tariffs or paperwork. The result is an effective customs border in the Irish Sea, disturbing GB-Northern Ireland trade and angering the provinces pro-British unionists.

Under the Commissions plans, British sausages, for example, would be allowed into Northern Ireland as long as they were solely intended for Northern Irish consumers.

On Tuesday, a day before that announcement, Frost is due to give a speech to the diplomatic community in the Portuguese capital, Lisbon.

He will say endless negotiation is not an option and that London will need to act using the Article 16 safeguard mechanism if solutions cannot be agreed rapidly.

Article 16 allows either side to take unilateral action if the protocol is deemed to have a negative impact.

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Ireland and UK trade barbs on Twitter over Brexit border checks - The Poultry Site

In October we plan to visit the UK: What are we allowed (or not allowed) to take with us as treats for friends and family?

When entering the UK from an EU country such as France, there are now some similar restrictions as those faced by those travelling in the opposite direction as to what you may or may not bring with you.

However new rules restricting certain foods are mostly not yet in place in the EU to UK direction.

Read more: Post-Brexit rules for bringing items into France from the UK

Restrictions in place this year relate mainly, for example, to duty-free allowances on tobacco and alcohol, bringing in large sums of cash or costly gifts and souvenirs.

This article focuses on holiday visits to the UK, not moving back to the UK from France, or transporting large amounts of furniture etc from a second home (we will address this in a future article).

The good news here is that the UK has so far delayed most restrictions and checks on bringing in certain foods from the EU, and this is not expected to change before next year.

This means you can still bring in meat and dairy products, fish, eggs, honey, fruits, vegetables and most seeds. In other words, you are currently free to take in French foie gras, pt and cheese.

However, the UK governments website states there are already restrictions on bringing plants for planting and certain types of seed for planting.

In general, then, any food treats you would like to bring will not pose an issue this year.

For future reference, this page clarifies the types of food that can be brought from anywhere in the world without issues, such as cakes that do not contain fresh cream, and breads (though not sandwiches containing meat or cheese).

The limits on these items, before UK VAT, customs and excise duties apply, are generous and also unlikely to pose an issue for a few bottles from friends and family, though take care of the quantities for spirits.

They are:

18 litres of still wine,

aswell as

The latter two allowances can be split, for example half the amount for spirits and half for fortified wine.

You must declare any cash or travellers cheques of 10,000 or more brought into the UK. This applies also if a family group is bringing in more than this combined.

This should be done in the 72 hours before travel, and you can do it online here, for entering Great Britain

You can also declare over the phone on 0044 (0)300 322 9434 or at the UK port or airport on a form.

In theory costly items bought in France and being taken in, especially travellers gifts or souvenirs, should be declared if they are over certain personal allowance amounts, per person (this would not relate to your own clothes and toiletries etc that you bought in France and are using on the trip and taking back).

So, for example you should watch out if any treats for family, are in the nature of costly fashion items, jewellery or electronics etc.

The amounts are up to 390 per person. If you go over, you pay VAT and duty on the total value of goods, not just the value above the allowance.

Duty is not payable if there is proof of the goods being made in the EU. Proving the latter is simpler where the total value of items is less than 1,000. In this case, labels and packaging are enough, otherwise you could be asked to show an invoice including specific information on origin.

If you need to make a declaration, you can do this online in the five days before arrival in the UK at this site.

The UKs customs service, HMRC, also has a helpline for information at 0044 (0) 300 322 9434.

UK-EU customs checks and taxes: Readers experiences so far

What are the rules for bringing British teabags to France post-Brexit?

French customs: Rules for taking furniture to second home

Continued here:

France to UK family visit: What gifts can we bring under Brexit rules? - The Connexion

USED CAR PRICES are now nearly 50% higher than they were just before the beginning of the pandemic in January 2020, a survey reveals.

The report, published by DoneDeal, found that the pandemic and Brexit-induced shock has had a staggering effect on prices.

In just three months since June 2021 usedcarprices have increased by 10.6%, the largest quarterly price inflation seen in usedcarprices in Ireland since the start of the DoneDeal data in 2011.

Not only are prices still increasing but also the rate of increase appears to be speeding up, not slowing down, the report found.

DoneDealsCarPrice Index, modeled by TCD and NUIG economist Dr. Tom Gillespie, shows that depreciation and increased mileage is still makingcarscheaper, but the overall price inflation (from decreased supply and increased demand) is eclipsing that negative effect, and thereforecarsare appreciating in valuefor many models.

The number ofcarsrequired to bring prices back to normal levels is in the region of 110,000 additionalcarsbased on pre-pandemic levels, the report added.

The study found that the CarPrice inflation appears to be much more acute at the lower end of the market where supply is constrained due to fall out of the end of life Celtic Tigercarsand Brexit reducing the number of imports.

Choked supply due to Brexit and pandemic-induced delays on the production of newcars- coupled with increased demand from increased savings are widely cited as causes of this abnormal price growth, and these contributing factors are showing few signs of abating in the short term.

The pandemic and Brexit-induced shock to the market has had a staggering effect on prices usedcarprices are now nearly 50% higher than they were just before the onset of the pandemic in February 2020.

Although the pandemic-induced supply shock has affected mostcarmarkets globally, Irelands case is exacerbated due to the compounding effect of Brexit. New barriers to trade have disrupted the regular flow of UK usedcarsinto the Irish market.

Imported usedcarregistrations are declining fast from a peak of 110,000 per year in 2019 to about 80,000 in 2020, and with only 30,000 registered so far in 2021 this year may see only half the 2019 number of usedcarsbeing imported into Ireland, the report found.

Demand for cars has increased, the report suggests, due to the pandemic causing an increased reliance on cars.

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For example, people moving out of cities are necessarily more reliant oncarsas public transport is less developed and operating at a reduced capacity due to restrictions, the report speculated.

The problem of increasing costs appears to be worst at the lower end of the market where supply is constrained due to end-of-life Celtic Tiger cars and Brexit reducing the number of imports.

Inflation is lower in the upper quarter of the market in cars worth 13,000 or more, running at 3.9%.

The report said that to bring the prices back to pre-covid-19 levels there is a need for 110,000 additional cars. Cash buyers make up around 50% of the market at present, DoneDeal says.

Originally posted here:

Pandemic and 'Brexit-induced shock' blamed for used car price hike - TheJournal.ie

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The Tory Party went to Manchester, European Commission VP Maros Sefcovic zoomed into Dublin and constructive EU-UK discussions on the Northern Ireland protocol may get rolling by the end of the month.

Join RT Europe Editor Tony Connelly, London Correspondent Sen Whelan and Deputy Foreign Editor Colm Mongin for a full round-up.

Guest: UUP leader Doug Beattie

Maros Sefcovic audio courtesy of the Institute of International and European Affairs. Full event here

Click here to download the podcast, subscribe on Stitcher or Apple, Google and Spotify or through the RT Radio Player.

Click here for the full series

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Podcast: Brexit Republic - Take It Or Leave It - RTE.ie

British Energy Secretary Kwasi Kwarteng and Indian Minister for Power and New & Renewable Energy, Raj Kumar Singh, met on October 8 to discuss strengthened collaboration to speed up the transition to global clean energy in the decade ahead. It was the third time they met as part of the UK-India Energy for Growth Dialogue. With under three weeks to go until COP26, Mr Singh and Mr Kwarteng built on earlier collaborative progress made since the first and second Dialogues in 2017 and 2018.

They celebrated Indias advancement of solar energy to power the Indian Railways, welcoming close collaboration through the India-led International Solar Alliance, which aims to attract over $1trillion (730billion) of investments in solar energy by 2030.

They also agreed that a strong domestic renewable energy sector is vital for building a secure energy system.

The energy secretaries said there are a wealth of exciting opportunities to create green jobs and drive economic growth across both India and the UK through decarbonisation.

They believe COP26 will be an opportunity to show global leadership on clean energy for the two sides.

In a display of their close ties, the two nations are expecting to launch the UK and India Governments Global Green Grids One Sun One World One Grid Initiative.

It seeks to bring together an international coalition of national governments, financial organisations, and power system operators to expand the construction of green infrastructure that is needed to help governments reach climate commitments.

These include the scale-up of secure, reliable and affordable power, such as modern, flexible grids, charging points, and electricity interconnectors.

The ministers endorsed a forward action plan on clean energy that will see a boost to renewable energy and storage and energy efficiency measures, with strategies like enabling production and use of green hydrogen, and increasing the switch to electric mobility to come into effect.

READ MORE:Space breakthrough as exoplanet discovery 'similar' to Earth

Supporting the move to clean energy is a shared priority, and our new joint programme on smart power, renewable energy and storage will help to increase investment in renewable projects, while creating new high skilled jobs across both nations as we build back greener.

Alex Ellis, High Commissioner to India, said: Action on climate change is a central pillar of the 2030 Roadmap agreed by Prime Ministers Modi and Johnson.

The Energy Dialogue today advanced our joint agenda to develop clean energy to support sustainable growth for both our economies.

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Brexit Britain strikes landmark deal with India 730bn in investments to be unlocked - Daily Express

Rotherham Labour councillor Denise Lelliott demanded that Boris Johnson "do something and do it now" for British steel now the country is in a post-Brexit world. She called on the prime minister to pump money into the quality steel produced in the UK and get behind British workers in the same wayGFG Alliance, the owner of steel giantLiberty, has done with a brand new50m cash injection that will enable steel productionto restartin Rotherham, saving hundreds of jobs.

Speaking to GB News, Ms Lelliott said: I want Boris and I want Boris government to invest in our steel industry in Rotherham and the United Kingdom.

Ms Lelliott went on to highlight Rotherhams rich steel heritage and identity before slamming how Mr Johnson needs to remember that if he is to deliver on a raft of post-Brexit promises to British industry.

She explained: When they came out with Brexit what they said was British jobs for British people

Our hands are tied because of competition law in Europe.

JUST IN'Why did you sign it!' Lord Frost destroyed over NI Protocol 'don't you understand?'

The Labour councillor slammed: Well your hands are untied now Boris, so do something and do it now!

The passionate Rotherham politician was then questioned whether the steel industry is actually a sustainable one given soaring competition from cheap Chinese and Indian steel.

Ms Lelliott hit back insisting it was but only if the government step in and deliver a sustainable plan for the British steel industry.

She said the plan must also be followed by an uptick in investment and support if the industry is to have any future or chance at success.

READ MORETory civil war erupts as party grandee Michael Heseltine rages at Boris 'Means nothing'

The 50m cash injection at Liberty Steelis part of a wider restructuring of Liberty's owner, it also involves Liberty Primary Metals Australia.

The injection follows months of uncertainty at Liberty triggered by the collapse of Greensill Capital, the firm of disgraced chum of David Cameron, Lex Greensill, a major investor in the company.

The plant in Rotherham, which has been closed since the spring, will begin pumping out steel over the coming months.

Local MP and Labour's Shadow Defence Secretary, John Healey, said the move was a "breakthrough" following months of uncertainty but warned the cash "won't be enough for long".

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'Put British back in steel!' PM under pressure to deliver Brexit promise to fund industry - Express

The renowned British opera singer Dame Sarah Connolly has warned that Britain will lose its placing among the worlds leading musical nations if younger performers and instrumentalists are not easily able to work abroad again.

Where is that next generation going to come from if they cant get known? Connolly asked on Desert Island Discs on Sunday. In an outspoken call to build bridges with Europe following Brexit, the mezzo-soprano spoke of her fear that musicians can no longer learn their craft properly and develop contacts at the great opera houses. Key post-Brexit problems encountered by musicians include new visa and work permit requirements, aside from carnets for transporting instruments.

The 58-year-old from Middlesbrough, who has sung at many prestigious venues, including Bayreuth, Vienna and the Metropolitan Opera in New York, as well as at Covent Garden and Glyndebourne, said she believes that European opera will recover after the pandemic, but that she is not so sure about the future of British opera singers.

Without some kind of situation where British musicians can spend a significant amount of time in Europe, establishing their careers, I am very concerned that [we will lose] what we have at the moment, which is roughly 20 per cent of the global excellence. Some of the greatest singers in the world are British, Connolly said.

The big international singing competitions such as Cardiff Singer of the Year, where people are thrust into the limelight, are not enough to compensate, she argued. What about the hard work of networking? Of going to work, like I did for months and months on end. Establishing yourself, with audiences getting to hear you, working through the repertoire in all languages?

How can we compete with our German, French, Portuguese, Austrian friends if we are not known?

Connolly expressed her concerns after revealing how hard it had been to be away from her daughter while working abroad. Describing it as one of the very sad things that an opera singer has to be away from their child, she said it is only possible with the support of a partner.

She also talked about her 2019 breast cancer diagnosis and her life since as a chemotherapy survivor. Singing became too painful during treatment, Connolly revealed. I did feel mortal fear. It was terrifying. I thought: I am not going to do this any more until all of this is finished, she explained.

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British musicians and singers will lose their high ranking if unable to work abroad - The Guardian

Bradley Walsh in The Larkins' (ITV)

ITVs new adaptation of H E Batess The Darling Buds of May, The Larkins, is an abomination. About the best that can be said for it is that its no more glutinously sentimental than the original television version, which was rightly euthanised like a surplus piglet about 30 years ago. It is the kind of production that the new secretary of state for culture, Nadine Mad Nad Dorries would greatly approve of, mainly because it is precisely the kind of opioid atavistic tosh she churns out in her novels. Its a sort of Brexit Television, set in a post-war green and pleasant England that never was and never will be, but for which so many feel an overwhelming nostalgia (and so much so that theyre prepared to vote in their millions for a better yesterday). Future historians, or better psychologists, should be in a good position to judge exactly why the British in recent decades have wanted so badly to escape their present. As if time machines, our tellies are transporting us to the idyllic heartlands of Heartbeat, Endeavour and Call the Midwife. Maybe in the 2070s theyll be making telly dramas set in the 2020s, featuring knowing, loving references to such quaint bygones as the Toyota Prius, Facebook and catatonic people in derelict shop doorways off their tits on spice.

Even for those of us whove long tried to maintain our distance from the Darling Buds phenomenon, the new series is immediately familiar, jam-packed with period props (rose-covered cottages, Morris Oxfords, Bakelite phones) and tiresome stereotypical characters. The cast, to be fair, actually doesnt do a bad job with the thin material theyre handed. Bradley Walsh cheerfully carries the burden of the bustling Pop Larkin, the golden-hearted wheeler dealer as ITV propaganda calls him, and does so slightly more convincingly than I recall David Jason managing. Where Jason played Pop as a sort of rural Del Boy in cords, tattersall shirt and a yokel accent, Walsh is a more authentic-sounding Kentish man, less condescending to Pop, and mercifully doesnt resort to the annoying perfick! catchphrase every time hes presented with an overflowing plate of roast goose (which is to say most of the time). The formidable Joanna Scanlan also lives up to the memory of Pam Ferris Ma Larkin, and Sabrina Bartlett takes on the challenge of the two-dimensional figure of eldest daughter Mariette Larkin, a worthy successor to Catherine Zeta-Jones (whatever happened to her?). The supporting players also put in a decent shift, and I almost enjoyed Peter Davison as the misanthropic vicar, Tony Gardner as the snobby Alec Norman, Kriss Dosanjh as the charming Brigadier, Robert Bathurst as the camp local celeb actor Johnny Delamere, and Amelia Bullmores neurotic Miss Pilchester, the very embodiment of genteel poverty.

Story continues

None of it works, though. Far from being a sunny bucolic paradise, the fictional village of Littlechurch comes across as a cloyingly class-ridden, almost feudal sort of place, and bewilderingly archaic to modern eyes. I dont believe that rural life in 1958 was half as blissful as it is painted, even for these purposes, and if it was its even more irritating, if you see what I mean I found myself wanting the county council to build one of the early motorways next to it, and Bovis Homes to turn up with the bulldozers and planning permission for a stunning development of 800 new executive homes, as they say.

And as for the darling Larkin family, well Pop Larkin is basically a crook who we see conning Delamere out of his lovely yellow vintage Rolls-Royce, then fooling the snob Alec into paying over the odds for some tat at the village summer fayre; selfishly preventing Mariette from following her dreams to go to Paris, and then pimping her out to the Inland Revenue inspector so he, Pop, can evade paying tax. The whole Larkin clan are tax-dodging, filthy-rich, brash, vulgar, gluttonous, feral, greedy, sadistic, humblebragging, self-righteous, parasitic yobs who prey on all around them. Whats to like about that? The Larkins should really be subject to an ASBO, and I really wish ITV hadnt let them out again. Jaded, hackneyed, lazy programming, its far from perfick.

The Larkins continues Sunday 17 October at 8pm on ITV

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The Larkins review: ITVs Darling Buds of May adaptation is a Brexit Television abomination - Yahoo News

Boris Johnson has been slated for trying to claim Brexit is to thank for the early success of the UKs vaccine rollout.

In his speech to Tory conference, the prime minister claimed UK used new freedoms to accelerate Britains distribution of jabs, and promised to use Brexit freedoms to do things differently.

But lawyer and filmmaker Peter Stefanovic claimed the vaccination programmes success had nothing to do with Brexit.

And he used a clip of MHRA head June Raine, in which she stated UKs supply of jabs has been enabled by Europe.

Raine said: We have been able to authorise the supply of this vaccine using provisions under European law, which exist until 1 January.

So our speed, our progress, has been totally dependent on the availability of data in our rolling review and a rigorous assessment and independent advice we have received.

I hope that clarifies the point about the European relationship.

Stefanovic also called out Johnsons insistence that the Tories have delivered 48 new hospitals and 50,000 more nurses, a promise made in the Conservatives 2019 election manifesto.

He remembered when, in August, it emerged that the government ordered NHS hospitals to describe building work on existing sites as new hospitals and when Johnson admitted to Sophy Ridge on Sky News that of 50,000 nurses, only 31,000 have actually been new.

Johnson also claimed that after more than a decade of stagnation, wages are going up.

But Stefanovic pointed out that throughout the past decade of Tory rule, Britain has seen soaring in-work poverty and literally the worst decade of wage growth since the Napoleonic War.

Stefanovic said: The energy bills are rising, food prices are rising, taxes are rising, inflation is rising.

The most recent rise in the national living wage was the lowest increase since the policy was introduced.

Most public sector pay is frozen, and a hike in national insurance contributions means our NHS workers are now paying for their own pay rise, which was already a real terms pay cut.

He added: Even Larry the cat knows the figures he relies on are the consequence of distortions in the statistics from lockdown and furlough.

Any wage rises seen in certain occupations will likely be gobbled up by soaring prices across the economy. Its just his latest con.

Stefanovic concluded by showing a brief BBC clip in which data showed that average weekly real wages which take into account inflation fell from 491 in April to 488 in July.

During his conference speech in Manchester, Johnson also claimed that the UK is heading towards a high-wage and low-tax economy.

He said: Thats the direction in which the country is going now towards a high-wage, high-skilled, high-productivity and, yes, thereby a low-tax economy. That is what the people of this country need and deserve.

Yes, it will take time, and sometimes it will be difficult, but that is the change that people voted for in 2016.

Peters other video about the PMs lies has got over 37 million views

Related: Big on bluster, short on substance: Boris gives rambling conference speech

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Watch: Boris Johnson claimed Brexit enabled vaccine success ...

Travel experts have noticed a decrease in the number of Brits in Spain since Brexit. This is due to more stringent immigration rules, as well as higher healthcare costs

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Spain: British expats face threat of return to UK warns expert

British expats are said to be leaving Spain "in droves", with numerous retirees abandoning the popular area of Costa del Sol as a result of Brexit.

Travel experts have noticed a decrease in the number of Brits in the country due to more stringent immigration rules brought in after the UK left the European Union.

Robert Barnhardt, a property expert who runs an estate agency in the seaside town of Fuengirola, said many retired people are now starting to sell their properties.

Due to Brexit, UK citizens can only visit Spain without a visa for up to three months for tourism and businesses purposes.

Have you been affected by this story? If so, email webnews@mirror.co.uk

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However, from 2022 British nationals will need a visa waiver to enter Spain, according to rules outlined on the Spanish government website.

The new rules will mean that Brits can still visit the country without a visa but will need to hold a valid ETIAS visa waiver before arriving.

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Mr Barnhardt told the Express that many pensioners used to spend up to six months in Spain to enjoy the warm weather before Brexit, but due to the new rules, this is no longer possible.

He explained: "A lot of retired British people are starting to sell up. They used to come down here in September or October and then stay until April/May for the six months of better weather.

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"But now they can only come for 90 days and also a lot of them used to drive down. The Spanish are now getting pretty strict on foreign plated cars and mainly British cars."

According to RAC advice for driving in Spain, from September 28 vehicles registered in the UK must display the letters UK when driven in Spain.

The sticker must be visible no matter what is on your number plate.

Mr Barnhardt said healthcare costs after Brexit are also influencing people's decision to leave Spain, as he said: "A lot of elderly people are choosing to go. Sometimes because of healthcare, or their health coverage."

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As of 2020, there were over 360,000 UK residents living in Spain, The Local reports.

Alicante, Malaga and the Balearic Islands hold the highest number of British residents in the country.

Earlier this year, The Mirror spoke to two Brits, and an EU citizen married to one, who say Brexit has left their retirement plans in tatters.

The fuming 72-year-old pensioner, who asked to be anonymous, said despite living in Spain with his Russian partner and their children for two decades they face being separated under the country's new rules.

He told The Mirror: "We have really been screwed over. I have worked here for years and so has my partner who is still working.

"She enjoys all the liberties of the United Kingdom legally and we own a home in Spain where she also enjoys all the liberties as she has an EU passport.

"We spend four to six months a year in our home in Spain but now I have been discriminated against and must leave after 90 days and leave her there for as long as she so wishes."

A hard-working Brit who owns a villa in Alicante she and her husband had hoped to spend half of every year in the property during their looming retirement.

But Marilyn Smyth, from Epping Forest, says their dreams have been all but ruined by Brexit.

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Brit expats 'leaving Spain in droves' as retirees abandon ...