The United Kingdom is ready for a new conflict with the EU over Brexit, testing the patience of European leaders who are trying to maintain a united front against Vladimir Putin.
What is threatening the UK, why now and what are the consequences?
This is the Northern Ireland Protocol signed by Boris Johnson in January 2020.
He is now threatening to derail Stormont’s new government after the Democratic Unionist Party refused to appoint new ministers until controls on the Irish Sea border for goods coming to Northern Ireland from Britain were lifted.
What happened now?
UK Foreign Secretary Liz Truss came out late last night on Tuesday with strong and lengthy criticism of the EU, criticizing proposals he made last October to ease checks on goods passing from Britain to Northern Ireland.
She said the proposals “would worsen current trade agreements and lead to the disappearance of everyday items from the shelves” and would lead to “other unacceptable burdens on business”.
She also warned that the United Kingdom “will not shy away from taking action to stabilize the situation in Northern Ireland if no solution can be found”.
Liz Truss’s full statement below is a long one: “I will not be ashamed to take action to stabilize the situation in Northern Ireland if no solution can be found. pic.twitter.com/YmTYqJN8EY
– Lisa O’Carroll (@lisaocarroll) May 11, 2022
She said Lincolnshire sausages and other chilled meats would need a veterinary certificate to enter Northern Ireland, sending a parcel to Northern Ireland would require more than 50 fields with information on customs declarations and “there will be powers to search people’s bags of food, like ham sandwiches, on the ferry to Northern Ireland. “
She also said pet owners would have to pay £ 280 for certificates and kicks for their dogs or cats, “just to go on holiday to the UK”.
Finally, that VAT incentives such as recent energy savings cannot be applied in Northern Ireland, “although they do not pose a risk to the EU single market”.
Haven’t we heard all this before?
Yes, most of them. Do you remember the scandal surrounding the Great Britain?
So why now?
Negotiations with the EU are on track to resume – or break down – if the UK continues to threaten to introduce new laws, possibly as early as Tuesday next week, so as not to implement part of the protocol.
Something new?
Yes. Trus also protested that composite foods such as “Thai green curry dishes, New Zealand lamb and Brazilian pork” could disappear from the shelves if the protocol is fully implemented.
Why is it interesting?
Remember the controversy over chlorinated chicken coming to the UK from the US? The example of Thai green curry raises the same issue for the EU and goes to the heart of the protocol’s checks. They agreed to ensure that goods from third countries – whether unregulated meat from South America or the United States or counterfeit goods from China – could not be introduced into Ireland or the single market through Northern Ireland.
What does the EU say?
Last October, the EU proposed abolishing 80% of food inspections in Northern Ireland and 50% of customs inspections in four discussion papers, which he called “comprehensive” and “new model” for the protocol.
He has also repeatedly proposed a deal to abolish food checks if the United Kingdom agrees to maintain equivalent food standards as the EU. This was rejected in the overall trade deal, as it could raise a barrier in trade deals with the United States and other countries with different food standards. But the EU has offered the UK a special agreement for Northern Ireland that would lead to physical checks on discarded food under an equivalence deal, which will be reviewed in the event of a trade agreement with the US.
How is the United Kingdom reacting?
The then Brexit secretary, Lord Frost, argued that “extensive” proposals were nothing like that – arguing that a 50% reduction in customs checks was simply a 50% reduction in the number of boxes that sellers had to check when sending goods from Great Britain to Northern Ireland.
He also demanded that the role of the European Court of Justice as an arbitrator in possible disputes be changed.
And he reiterated the threat to take unilateral action to achieve his goals.
So what now – will the United Kingdom leave?
Negotiations, suspended both because of the war in Ukraine and because of the parliamentary elections in Northern Ireland, will resume.
But expect the relationship to get worse before it gets better.
The United Kingdom is expected to unveil legislation next week that does not implement part of the protocol.
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What will the EU do if the United Kingdom abandons the protocol?
EU Brexit leader Maroš Šefčovič issued a harsh statement Tuesday, warning that the protocol was a “cornerstone” of a broader withdrawal agreement and “renegotiation is not an option”. If the United Kingdom does pursue the nuclear option and does not fully implement the protocol, the EU has promised swift and decisive action.
They can range from limited sanctions to iconic British goods such as Scottish salmon and whiskey or a halt to the whole trade and cooperation deal.
The United Kingdom knows the EU has no appetite for scandal over the situation in Ukraine, but work on the legal basis for a trade war was undertaken last November when Frost threatened to leave.
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