LORD FROST: The EU must stop point scoring and work with us to protect peace 

Just two weeks ago the European Parliament finally ratified our agreement with the EU. Now we can start to make it work. 

This agreement gives us full control over our own laws, courts, borders and money. It ends alignment with the EU and thereby gives us freedom to reach trade agreements with the rest of the world.

That is all I have always wanted from Brexit – free trade and friendly relations with our neighbours as a sovereign country. That is what Britain has stood for over the best part of two centuries since the repeal of the Corn Laws in 1846.

After the interlude of EU membership, we are going back to our roots.

We are doing so in a positive and pragmatic way. That’s how I want to work with my opposite number, Commissioner Maros Sefcovic.

It’s true that we could be forgiven for thinking, after the past few months, that our European friends have not all seen things in the same way. 

From the unfortunate attempt to put a hard border on the island of Ireland for vaccine exports, to the threats to cut off electricity to Jersey or to retaliate against our financial services, we haven’t always heard much enthusiasm to make things work.

Equally we know that, at a practical level, European authorities have co-operated constructively with us to keep goods and lorries moving through new customs controls and the challenges presented by Covid. 

We did not see the queues in Kent that many expected and goods exports to the EU are now back above last year’s levels.

This is a big change in our relationship. Things may well continue to be a bit bumpy. But where there are difficulties we can work through them as sovereign equals. 

Defending our interests when that is necessary – as we showed in Jersey recently – but always being constructive when we can.

But one area remains unsettled. Our new relationship with the EU won’t be right until we have dealt with the problems arising from the Northern Ireland Protocol.

The Protocol as we now have it was a huge improvement on the old ‘backstop’ which it replaced. This would have kept the whole of the UK locked in the EU customs union and single market until the EU gave us the keys.

The fundamental aims behind this new Protocol are worthy ones – to protect the peace process and the Belfast (Good Friday) Agreement, to support Northern Ireland’s prosperity by keeping borders and trade open, and to minimise disruption to everyday life in Northern Ireland.

It is perfectly possible to deliver those aims while at the same time protecting the EU’s single market – but not in the way the Protocol is currently operating.

I saw this for myself this week when visiting Arcadia, a deli which has been an institution in Belfast for the best part of a century. 

Its shoppers have always been able to choose from a variety of goods, from artisan jams, to pork pies, to Norfolk sausages, from all over the UK.

But now the choice on their shelves may shrink fast. Stores like this are reporting that their small suppliers based in the rest of the UK are beginning to stop sending them their products. 

They find it too difficult and too time-consuming to deal with the paperwork. This means less choice for Northern Ireland consumers than in the rest of the UK.

This is just one snapshot. It isn’t just local delis feeling the effects. Businesses have been putting in extraordinary efforts to make things work. But risks to the supply of all kinds of products remain and may well get worse as the year progresses. 

Yet there is no evidence that goods not meeting EU standards are getting into the EU’s single market via Northern Ireland.

All this paperwork and checks – to deal with a risk that does not exist.

The EU takes a very purist view of all this. It seems to want to treat goods moving to Northern Ireland from the rest of the UK in the same way as the arrival of a vast Chinese container ship at Rotterdam. We did not anticipate this when we agreed the Protocol and it makes no sense.

I totally understand why this makes unionism in Northern Ireland anxious and why consent for the Protocol is now fragile. Protests have been occurring and political stability is at risk. 

Our overriding aim has always been to protect the Belfast (Good Friday) Agreement. If the Protocol is not protecting it, it is not working.

The EU has a responsibility here. The Protocol is a shared UK-EU agreement. The EU needs, rapidly, to find a new approach and new solutions.

Northern Ireland is fully part of our UK union. We have seen this in action with the vaccine rollout and the furlough scheme. 

If the Protocol operates so as to damage the political, social, or economic fabric of life in Northern Ireland, then that situation cannot be sustained for long.

We are responsible for protecting the peace and prosperity of everyone in Northern Ireland and we will continue to consider all our options for doing so.

So my message to our friends in Europe is: stop the point-scoring and work with us. Seize the moment, help find a new approach to Northern Ireland, and then we can build a new relationship for the future.

Boris Johnson could rip up UK’s post-Brexit agreement with EU over Northern Ireland

Boris Johnson could be just weeks away from ripping up the UK’s post-Brexit agreement with the EU over Northern Ireland to avoid an eruption of violence in the province’s summer marching season.

Brexit Minister Lord Frost signals in the Mail on Sunday that if Brussels continues to insist on checks on goods arriving from the UK mainland, the Government could trigger Article 16 of the Northern Ireland Protocol to suspend the checks.

No 10 fears that unless it takes such action, unionist violence could flare during the July marching season in protest at an effective barrier down the Irish Sea.

Urging Brussels to ‘stop the point-scoring and work with us’, Lord Frost says the UK’s ‘European friends’ did not appear to share our desire for ‘free trade and friendly relations’. 

He writes: ‘From the unfortunate attempt to put a hard border on the island of Ireland for vaccine exports, to the threats to cut off electricity to Jersey or to retaliate against our financial services, we haven’t always heard much enthusiasm to make things work.’

Lord Frost says he saw the problems caused by EU checks at Belfast’s Arcadia delicatessen, writing: ‘Its shoppers have always been able to choose from a variety of goods… artisan jams, to pork pies, to Norfolk sausages, from all over the UK.’

But he warns suppliers in the rest of the UK are stopping deliveries to such stores as it is ‘too difficult and too time-consuming to deal with the paperwork’, leaving ‘less choice for Northern Ireland consumers than in the rest of the UK’.

Article 16 gives the UK and the EU unilateral power to suspend parts of the Protocol if its application creates ‘serious economic, societal or environmental difficulties that are liable to persist, or to diversion of trade’.

The EU is refusing to budge on the Protocol because it argues that it is a direct consequence of the Brexit Boris Johnson negotiated, and says that London should instead agree to align UK food standards with those of the EU. 

Under the Withdrawal Agreement, Northern Ireland observes EU rules on food.

Lord Frost warns: ‘Protests have been occurring and political stability is at risk. Our overriding aim has always been to protect the Belfast (Good Friday) Agreement. If the Protocol is not protecting it, it is not working. The EU has a responsibility here. 

‘The Protocol is a shared UK-EU agreement. The EU needs, rapidly, to find a new approach and new solutions… if the Protocol operates so as to damage the political, social, or economic fabric of life in Northern Ireland.’ 

Amazon Wins Court Fight in Blow to EU Tax Crusade

The United States technology giant Amazon has won big in court in the latest development in its long-running battle with the European Union.
Ironically, the victory came in an EU court, where the company and EU member Luxembourg had jointly appealed an earlier ruling that they had entered into an illegal tax arrangement.
Judges from the bloc’s General Court ordered the EU to rescind a demand for 215 million pounds (US$302 million) in back-taxes in what The Telegraph newspaper called “an embarrassing defeat”.
But the court said Luxembourg, which is one of the four official capitals of the EU, had not given “selective advantage” to Amazon, which had located its European headquarters there.
The judges said the European Commission the bloc’s executive branch failed to prove “to the requisite legal standard that there was an undue reduction of the tax burden of a European subsidiary of the Amazon group”.

People of the Netherlands trust EU to combat coronavirus pandemic

EU leaders condemn Hamas attacks

EU leaders say they are very concerned about the growing violence in Israel and Gaza. They condemned Hamas attacks and stressed that all civilian casualties must be avoided.

Several EU leaders supported Israel’s security in recent days.

EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen wrote on Twitter that she “condemns arbitrary attacks by Hamas against Israel” and that “civilians on both sides must be protected.”

Josep Borrell, the High Representative of the Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, called for peace between the parties on Thursday night, saying he had “confirmed EU support for Israel’s security and condemned Hamas’ arbitrary firing of rockets” in a conversation with Israeli Foreign Minister Gabi Ashkenazi.

According to the Elysee Palace, French President Emmanuel Macron also expressed sympathy with the victims of attacks by Hamas and “other terrorist groups” in talks with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Macron has said Israel had the right to defend itself.

Source: © NTB Scanpix / #Norway Today / #NorwayTodayNews

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EU Urges Russia to Revise Decision on ‘Unfriendly States’ List, Borrell Says

“We call on Russia to review its decision, to avoid a further deterioration of our relationship that is already under strain. The EU will continue to coordinate its position with its partners,” Borrell said in a statement.

The bloc deplored the publication of measures in response to “Unfriendly Actions of Foreign States,” slamming “the allegations of unfriendly actions as unfounded.”

The Russian Cabinet on Friday approved the list of states that are not friendly to Russia, the list includes two countries: the United States and the Czech Republic. Earlier, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov in an interview said that Moscow will not indiscriminately add countries to the list of unfriendly states, explaining that any decision will be preceded by a thorough analysis, while the list that has been drawn up may be revised over time. According to the minister, this will not be a “dead” paper: the list “will, of course, be revised” as relations with the respective states develop.

It is expected that on May 24-25, the topic of relations between Russia and the EU will be discussed at the bloc’s summit in Brussels.

Treasury prepares for bonfire of EU red tape

Brussels’ reluctance to grant financial market access leaves Government poised to rip up rulebook to boost London’s trading status

However, senior figures in Brussels are suspected of seeking to stall the equivalence process in a bid to steal business from London or extract concessions in other areas.

One Whitehall source said that a bare-bones deal on finance has now been priced in, and ministers believe that the City is fully prepared for it.

The source said: “The situation was always going to be that we weren’t locked into their evolving rulebook. It was always going to be thin.”

While a number of significant reforms are likely,…

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EU, partners hosts second multi-stakeholder roundtable on Cocoa

The Delegation of the European Union to Ghana, Ministry of Lands and Natural Resources and the COCOBOD have hosted the second multi-stakeholder roundtable on sustainable Cocoa in Accra

The environmental sustainability of cocoa production is at the heart of the second online roundtable discussion organised in the framework of the National Dialogue on Sustainable Cocoa.

A joint statement from the parties said the National Dialogue on Sustainable Cocoa in Ghana was launched in March 2021 by the EU and COCOBOD.

Madam Diana Acconcia, EU Ambassador to Ghana, said, “The EU is committed to tackling the problem of global deforestation and forest degradation.

She said together, as partners, “we can tackle climate change and biodiversity loss while ensuring socio-economic transformation.”

“Transparent traceability system is essential to guarantee to all actors of the value chain that Ghanaian cocoa is environmentally sustainable,” she added.

Mr Joseph Boahen Aidoo, Chief Executive Officer, COCOCBOD, said, “The COCOBOD, in partnership with the Forestry Commission is currently working on a digital Cocoa Management System”.

He said this system would map all cocoa farms, collect data on the profile of cocoa farmers, and ensure that Ghanaian cocoa can be traced from the farm to the fork.

Mr. John Allotey, Chief Executive Officer, Forestry Commission, informed that: “Transparent and inclusive traceability systems will facilitate the monitoring of cocoa production and its potential impact on deforestation and forest degradation.”

He said such systems would establish a climate of trust among all stakeholders in the value chain, as “we have learnt in the set-up of the Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade – Voluntary Partnership Agreement and REDD+ Governance Structures.”

The first two online events attracted more than 150 participants each, confirming the high interest around sustainability matters in Ghana.

The second roundtable focuses on how traceability and transparency can be further improved to support a cocoa supply chain that can prove to be deforestation-free.

Representatives of a large spectrum of stakeholders involved in the cocoa sector – government officials, civil society organisations, farmers’ organisations, private sector representatives and development partners shared their experiences and lessons learnt around traceability as a mechanism to monitor and prevent deforestation.

Recommendations from these discussions feed a broader dialogue launched last year by the European Commission together with global cocoa lead producers Ghana and Côte d’Ivoire.

Minister calls for closer links with ‘best ally’ EU

EU mulls ‘next steps’ as UK responds to Brexit lawsuit

INTERNATIONAL – The European Union said Saturday it was weighing its “next steps” after Britain formally responded to Brussels over the launch of legal proceedings alleging London broke the Brexit protocol covering Northern Ireland.

“We can confirm that the United Kingdom replied on 14 May to the European Commission’s letter of formal notice, sent on 15 March,” a European Commission spokesperson said.

“The Commission will now assess the contents of the letter before deciding on next steps.”

The EU began an “infringement procedure” in March after London unilaterally delayed until October the introduction of custom controls on goods arriving in Northern Ireland from mainland Britain.

Brussels says this violates the protocol of the 2019 divorce pact that deals with Ireland, one of the most sensitive and fought over issues of Britain’s break from bloc membership after 47 years.

The two sides insist they are working hard to find a solution after the protocol helped generate a leadership crisis and unrest in Northern Ireland.

The protocol is designed to prevent the emergence of a “hard border” between Northern Ireland, which remains part of the United Kingdom, and its EU neighbour, the Republic of Ireland.

The special arrangement shifts customs and regulatory checks to Northern Irish ports on goods arriving from mainland Britain, effectively keeping the UK region within the EU’s customs orbit.

The dispute over the Northern Ireland protocol is one of multiple feuds souring post-Brexit ties between the EU and its former member — with France and Britain also recently squaring off over fishing rights around the Channels Islands.

AFP

Ukraine expects EU to review Neighborhood Policy – Dpty PM

Portugal to allow EU and UK tourists with a…