Thursday, May 14, 2020
Key Brexit admission by UK government
For months now, UK ministers has insisted that the Brexit deal they agreed with the EU will not lead to separate custom checks on goods passing through Northern Ireland, despite European officials saying otherwise. In fact, Boris Johnson has gone so far as to promise these checks will not be put in place.
Now, however, UK government officials have written to Northern Ireland’s executive confirming that new physical “infrastructure” will be funded at a series of ports. The Independent reports that Declan Kearney, a junior minister at the executive office, told a Stormont committee that London officials had provided a briefing on Monday on the latest stage of trade negotiations with the EU:
He told them that the Westminster government has “confirmed that it will urgently put in place detailed plans with the executive, which does include the physical posts at ports of entry”.
Last November Mr Johnson was filmed telling business leaders in Northern Ireland there would be “no checks” on goods. The prime minister claimed he would “tell them to throw that form in the bin” if they were asked to fill out any extra paperwork.
The fact that Northern Ireland is set to continue to follow EU single market rules on agricultural and manufactured goods after Brexit, while the rest of the UK will stop following these rules at the end of 2020, made this claim nonsense of course.
It is nice to have a bit of honesty from the UK government on this issue, at last.
Now, however, UK government officials have written to Northern Ireland’s executive confirming that new physical “infrastructure” will be funded at a series of ports. The Independent reports that Declan Kearney, a junior minister at the executive office, told a Stormont committee that London officials had provided a briefing on Monday on the latest stage of trade negotiations with the EU:
He told them that the Westminster government has “confirmed that it will urgently put in place detailed plans with the executive, which does include the physical posts at ports of entry”.
Last November Mr Johnson was filmed telling business leaders in Northern Ireland there would be “no checks” on goods. The prime minister claimed he would “tell them to throw that form in the bin” if they were asked to fill out any extra paperwork.
The fact that Northern Ireland is set to continue to follow EU single market rules on agricultural and manufactured goods after Brexit, while the rest of the UK will stop following these rules at the end of 2020, made this claim nonsense of course.
It is nice to have a bit of honesty from the UK government on this issue, at last.
