Brexit

British farming will struggle to compete if zero-tariff trade on lamb and beef goes ahead with a post-Brexit trade deal with Australia, the president of the National Farmers’ Union (NFU) has said. A split has emerged within cabinet over the prospect of such an agreement, with environment secretary George Eustice and cabinet office minister Michael […]

Incoming DUP leader Edwin Poots has held talks with the Northern Ireland secretary in Belfast. Poots had requested the face-to-face meeting with Brandon Lewis to discuss Brexit’s contentious Northern Ireland Protocol and a series of other issues. The Lagan Valley MLA has said removing the Protocol, which governs Irish Sea trade, will be his main […]

George Eustice and Liz Truss have reportedly rowed over a proposed trade deal between the UK and Australia. The Financial Times reported environment secretary Eustice, along with Cabinet Office minister Michael Gove, were concerned about the potential impact of tariff-free access for Australian farmers on the British agricultural sector. They have concerns the agreement would further […]

The UK’s Brexit negotiator has admitted the government underestimated the impact of Brexit on Northern Ireland. David Frost, who led the talks with the EU, said the disruption to trade between Great Britain and the country had been far greater than what was expected. Speaking to a committee of MPs he said there had been […]

Boris Johnson’s administration is recruiting an external adviser to identify new opportunities following Brexit to demonstrate the benefits of the UK’s departure from the European Union. Almost five years on from the Brexit referendum result, the Tory government continues to struggle to demonstrate the tangible benefits of leaving the EU. It has set former Tory leader […]

The UK’s relationship with the European Union after Brexit could remain “bumpy” for some time, the government admitted. Brexit minister Lord Frost said he wanted the situation with Brussels to improve but highlighted ongoing problems with Northern Ireland’s post-Brexit arrangements. The Tory peer told MPs that the ability to diverge from EU regulations would be […]

An agreed approach is “urgently required” between the UK and EU to avoid any restriction in the availability of medicines in Northern Ireland, a draft government document has warned. The UK government has also set out plans for a phased approach to new Irish Sea border checks on food, in a Northern Ireland Protocol document […]

The incoming DUP leader has said getting rid of the Northern Ireland Protocol will be his top priority in the coming months. Edwin Poots said he is planning a showdown with Boris Johnson and Taoiseach Michael Martin within his first 90 days in office to try and resolve the post-Brexit trade arrangements. Stormont’s current agriculture […]

Brexit minister Lord Frost has threatened that the UK could soon take drastic action over the post-Brexit agreement on Northern Ireland over concerns about violence and disruption. He urged the European Union to “stop the point-scoring and work with us” to “rapidly” find new solutions to end border checks on goods crossing the Irish Sea […]

Many pro-Europeans, north and south of the border, have sympathy with the independence cause. But this is yet another Union they should fight to stay in A referendum on Scottish independence is coming. Boris Johnson pretends it isn’t. He will delay, prevaricate, challenge in court and maybe deny it altogether. But none of these tactics will […]

One in 10 EU nationals living in the UK are considering leaving before the deadline to get settled status, a new survey has found. The Independent Monitoring Authority for the Citizens’ Rights Agreements (IMA) found that some 10% of EU citizens are considering to move by June – the legal deadline by which EU nationals […]

Lawyers have revealed five ‘false claims’ made by ministers they say prove the government refused to strike a deal to rescue visa-free touring in the EU. Legal opinion obtained by The Incorporated Society of Musicians (ISM) found ministers misled performers about the reason behind not pursuing a Visa Waiver Agreement (WVA) with Brussels last year. In fact, […]

Northern Ireland’s troubled past and Brexit tensions are likely to dominate discussions between the Irish premier and UK prime minister on Friday. Boris Johnson has been dogged by criticism in recent days over his response to an inquest finding that 10 people killed in shootings involving the Army in the Ballymurphy area of west Belfast […]

A legal challenge by unionists to the Northern Ireland Protocol is set to begin. The judicial review is being taken in the name of unionists from across the UK, including DUP leader Arlene Foster, UUP leader Steve Aiken, TUV leader Jim Allister and Belfast Agreement architect Lord Trimble. It will be heard by Mr Justice […]

The sound of us Remainers crying over spilled milk has been replaced by everyone crying over unsold milk It has been another gloomy week on the sunlit uplands of sovereign Britain. The dairy industry has been among the biggest losers of Brexit so far, with milk and cream exports to the EU down 96.4% year […]

Efforts to explain recent political developments through the prism of regions misses more pertinent points about England’s electoral map On Crosby beach on the north shore of the River Mersey, Antony Gormley’s sculptures of naked metal men famously stand stoically in the face of the waves of the Irish Sea. Much of this coastline is lined by […]

The Home Office has been urged to give EU citizens in the UK the automatic right to stay as it emerged 305,000 applications are still yet to be processed. EU citizens have a deadline of June 30 to apply for settled status to afford them legal status to carry on living and working in the […]

Brexit has cost the UK economy £16billion in trade since 2016, experts have said. The Centre for European Reform (CER) estimates that leaving the single market and customs union at the end of 2020 has reduced UK trade by £7.7billion, or 11%, since March. Another £8billion – or 10% – has been wiped from the […]

Greater Manchester mayor Andy Burnham has said the UK must “draw a line” under Brexit and instead focus on keeping the Union together. Burnham – who won his mayoral race with 67% of the vote on Thursday – told The London Economic he thought voters had deserted the Labour Party because it was seen as the party […]

Brexit minister Lord Frost has once again urged the EU to take a “common sense, risk-based approach” to the Brexit arrangements in Northern Ireland. He said the UK and the EU must find a solution “rapidly” after he and Northern Ireland secretary Brandon Lewis met business and community representatives in Northern Ireland during the two-day […]

Britons living in Spain are being turned away from Covid vaccine centres after not having the correct post-Brexit medical documentation, it has been claimed. British newspapers report that local authorities are turning away those without valid European Health Insurance Cards (EHIC) or Global Health Insurance Cards (GHIC) and that do not have private health insurance. That is despite […]

On the 40th anniversary of the election of François Mitterrand, former Europe minister DENIS MacSHANE considers his immense role in European integration and how he enlisted Margaret Thatcher in this project. Forty years ago France woke up to its first socialist president. The election of François Mitterrand, which came two years after Margaret Thatcher’s victory and one year after Ronald […]

It has not even been five months since the end of the Brexit transition period and there have been armed patrol vessels in the Channel. The sad thing is: this is only the latest stage in a development that began with the Brexit referendum and saw a significant decline in Britain’s role on the diplomatic […]

Manufacturers based in Boris Johnson’s new freeports will not be able to enjoy the full benefits if they are exporting to a series of countries with which the UK has signed post-Brexit trade deals. The prime minister and chancellor Rishi Sunak have championed freeports – special economic zones offering tax breaks and lower tariffs – […]

Labour’s new national campaign co-ordinator has refused to rule out the party adopting a new policy for freedom of movement. In 2019, Labour’s manifesto committed the party to extending rights, with Keir Starmer pledging to his supporters that he would “defend free movement as we leave the EU” during the leadership race. But after Brexit took place […]

There has been a post-Brexit trend exhorting food shoppers to ‘buy British’. But just how feasible is it? And is it necessarily a good thing? It is not just food. On the ‘Buy British’ Facebook group, recent requests for advice on UK-sourced homemade goods include everything from ‘leisure batteries’ to Lancashire sofa cushions. No, I didn’t know […]

Diplomatic efforts with France will be stepped up to prevent a repeat of the Jersey fishing dispute. The Royal Navy will continue to keep a watch on events but the two vessels deployed to the Channel Island were ordered back to port after the French protest ended. The UK government will now work with France […]

The Civil Service has been weakened by Brexit and the growth of court politics. But a rearguard action is underway. Plucked from relative obscurity at the age of 41 to become cabinet secretary, Simon Case could hardly have imagined his present role as head of the Downing Street shovel brigade, clearing up mess largely of […]