Tony Connelly Profile picture
Sep 16, 2020 19 tweets 3 min read Read on X
Breaking: @MichelBarnier has told EU ambassadors that legal action against the UK remains on the table, but will be used only at the "appropriate time"
2/ During a briefing this morning it's understood EU ambassadors registered "cold fury" at Boris Johnson's move to overwrite the NI Protocol. However the message was to continue with the trade negotiations, and to separate the work of the Joint Committee (on the WA) + trade talks
3/ However, member states told Barnier that strong vigilance was needed on governance - ie, dispute resolution - for both the WA and the future relationship.
4/ "That means double vigilance on governance and enforcement measures,” says a source briefed on the Coreper meeting. “And there is no mood to compromise on that. We need a very robust governance system if there is to be a deal.”
5/ Meanwhile, acc to a paper circulated by the Commission to member states, the EU will formally list the UK as an “approved” third country when it comes to importing food products into the EU, only once the London provides “clarity” on its own future food imports regime
6/ A dispute over when both sides will “list” the other in terms of food imports, is seen in the EU as being used by Downing Street as “cover” to allege that the EU was threatening a food blockade of Northern Ireland.
7/ The working paper, seen by @rtenews, states: “Michel Barnier clearly stated that the EU is not refusing to list the UK as a third country for food imports.
8/ “To be listed, the EU needs to know in full what a country’s rules are, including for imports. This assessment is an objective process and the same for all countries.
9/ “If the future UK rules on food imports fulfil all applicable conditions, then the European Union would proceed with the listing of the United Kingdom as a third country for these purposes as of 1 January 2021.
10/ “However, up to now, we do not have full clarity from the UK government regarding its future regime, in particular for imports into the UK.”
11/ The working paper says that London informed Brussels “last week” that it will apply the EU’s body of rules on animal health and food safety, known as the Official Controls Regulation.
12/ The paper also states that London had not listed the EU as approved for food imports to the UK: “The UK has not yet proceeded to list the EU as a third country.”
13/ On Sunday David Frost, the UK’s chief negotiator, challenged the EU’s insistence that the UK had not come forward with details of its food safety regime from the end of the Brexit transition period.
14/ In a tweet Mr Frost stated: “On 3rd country listings: the EU knows perfectly well all the details of our food standards rules because we are operating EU rules. The situation on 1.1.21 is accordingly perfectly clear.”
15/ However, the paper circulated to EU capitals says that, although the UK is operating under EU rules at present because of the transition period, there is no legal clarity about the regime post January 1.
16/ “The UK is indeed ‘operating EU rules’ right now as we are in the transition period,” the paper states. “We are still waiting for comprehensive information on what the UK’s future rules will be, in particular for imports, after 31 Dec and when these rules will be adopted."
17/ The circular also spells out that exit summary declarations for goods going from Northern Ireland to Great Britain are required under the Protocol.

This is one of the elements the Internal Market Bill attempts to “disapply”.
18/ The Commission paper states that while exit summary declarations “are in general much lighter than import customs procedures,” some formalities are required for VAT purposes, to control export prohibitions and restrictions, and to allow the EU to comply with intl rules.
19/ “This is necessary to protect the external dimension of the Single Market. The Northern Ireland Protocol provides for the continued application of those export formalities, in as far as they are necessary to ensure compliance with the Union’s international obligations.”

• • •

Missing some Tweet in this thread? You can try to force a refresh
 

Keep Current with Tony Connelly

Tony Connelly Profile picture

Stay in touch and get notified when new unrolls are available from this author!

Read all threads

This Thread may be Removed Anytime!

PDF

Twitter may remove this content at anytime! Save it as PDF for later use!

Try unrolling a thread yourself!

how to unroll video
  1. Follow @ThreadReaderApp to mention us!

  2. From a Twitter thread mention us with a keyword "unroll"
@threadreaderapp unroll

Practice here first or read more on our help page!

More from @tconnellyRTE

Jun 11
NEW: The European Court of Justice has ruled that refugee status may be granted to female asylum seekers who have, over time, adopted the values of equality between men and women in their EU host countries.
2/ The ruling could have far-reaching implications for the granting of refugee status where female applicants in particular are at risk of persecution in their home countries.
3/ The case was prompted by two female Iraqi teenagers who had been living in the Netherlands since 2015 and who feared that if they were deported to Iraq they would face persecution because girls and women did not enjoy the same rights as men there.
Read 16 tweets
May 27
NEW: Ireland's foreign minister @MichealMartinTD says EU foreign ministers have for the first time discussed the prospect of sanctions against Israel if it does not comply with an order from the International Court of Justice (ICJ).
2/ He suggested Ireland would support such an approach.

“Certainly, if compliance [with Friday’s ICJ ruling] isn't forthcoming, then we have to consider all options,” he said.
3/ He also said a number of foreign ministers had raised the prospect of sanctions against Israeli officials who were aiding and abetting violent West Bank Settlers.
Mr Martin was speaking in Brussels following a meeting of EU foreign ministers, who were joined by Arab ministers.
Read 11 tweets
May 27
NEW: The Irish foreign minister Micheal Martin has described as "barbaric" the attack on a Palestinian refugee camp in Rafah last night, saying that UN agencies had predicted that Israel's assault on Rafah would have dire consequences.
2. He was speaking during a joint news conference in Brussels with his Spanish and Norwegian counterparts ahead of the three countries' recognition of the state of Palestine tomorrow.
3. He said: “All of this was predicted by all the UN agencies and humanitarian groups that I met. They predicted that any military operation in Rafah would have dire consequences for the population in Gaza and that is exactly what is happening right now.
Read 9 tweets
Nov 8, 2023
Doctors Without Borders @MSF has described a catastrophic situation at the Al-Shifa hospital in Gaza City, with Israeli defence forces now less than one kilometre away, according to the latest reports.
2/ MSF says between 40,000 to 60,000 civilians are sheltering at the hospital, while doctors treating hundreds of injured patients - mostly children - are facing a horrific shortage of basic medical needs, with fuel running out.
3/ “It's difficult to put into words,” Faris Al-Jawad, Communications Manager for Palestine MSF told @rtenews. “Saying it's deteriorated or has become catastrophic is an understatement. It's been catastrophic [for some time]. The healthcare system has collapsed.”
Read 15 tweets
Oct 27, 2023
Taoiseach @LeoVaradkar has said he understood the arguments about a super majority being needed in the event of a referenum on a united Ireland, and said “50pc plus 1” would not be a desirable outcome.
2/ He said: “We would much rather see a convincing majority for unification, if and when a border poll comes.”

However, he said it would be difficult to sustain that situation if a persistent numerical majority rejected the current status quo.
3/ He was speaking in response to Northern Ireland Office minister @SteveBakerHW's remarks earlier this week that a border poll should require a super majority on both sides of the border.
Read 11 tweets
Oct 23, 2023
NEW: EU Commission president @vonderleyen has written to staff saying she was “ready to engage, and to listen to your concerns” on the Middle East following a letter signed by over 800 Commission officials last week protesting against her allegedly unequivocal support for Israel.
2/ In a letter circulated internally, seen by @rtenews, Ms von der Leyen said the events unfolding in the Middle East were “a deep source of sorrow and concern for all of us.”
3/ Without referring to last week’s letter, the Commission president said she recognised that many staff members were affected by the crisis “on a personal level.”
Read 15 tweets

Did Thread Reader help you today?

Support us! We are indie developers!


This site is made by just two indie developers on a laptop doing marketing, support and development! Read more about the story.

Become a Premium Member ($3/month or $30/year) and get exclusive features!

Become Premium

Don't want to be a Premium member but still want to support us?

Make a small donation by buying us coffee ($5) or help with server cost ($10)

Donate via Paypal

Or Donate anonymously using crypto!

Ethereum

0xfe58350B80634f60Fa6Dc149a72b4DFbc17D341E copy

Bitcoin

3ATGMxNzCUFzxpMCHL5sWSt4DVtS8UqXpi copy

Thank you for your support!

Follow Us!

:(