EU sources have expressed concern over the tone of Michael Gove’s letter to his European Commission counterpart on changes the UK is demanding to the Northern Ireland Protocol.
2/ The UK cabinet minister has demanded sweeping and swift changes to the Northern Ireland Protocol as the fallout continues from last week’s move by the Commission to trigger Article 16 of the Protocol over the issue of exports of Covid 19 vaccines.
3/ EU sources have said the letter resembled an ultimatum to the EU, as tensions mount in Northern Ireland over the impact of the Protocol, which has meant customs and food safety formalities on goods moving from Great Britain to Northern Ireland.
4/ Officials have also said that the UK has still not facilitated access for the EU to its customs IT system, so that EU officials are able to monitor in real time the flow of goods across the Irish Sea.
5/ The UK and EU signed a partnership agreement on December 17 in which London agreed to grant the EU access to HMRC’s data system. In return, the EU agreed to facilitate a trusted trader scheme which simplified customs formalities.
6/ However, EU sources say access has not yet been facilitated.

Officials also say that the UK has yet to make use of other flexibilities, such as data generated when goods are shipped by ferry from Northern Ireland to Great Britain.
7/ Such data was envisaged as providing equivalent information to so-called exit summary declarations, which are normally required when goods leave the EU’s customs union.
8/ Earlier Mr Gove and his opposite number Maros Sefcovic held a forty minute video conference, along with the First and Deputy First Ministers of Northern Ireland.
9/ Afterwards both sides agreed to a face to face meeting in London next week, under the auspices of the EU UK Joint Committee, set up to implement the Brexit Withdrawal Agreement.
10/ It’s understood EU customs and veterinary officials, operating alongside their Northern Ireland counterparts at Northern Ports, have still not been given clearance to return to their duties.
11/ This follows graffiti and alleged intimidation related antagonisms towards the Irish Sea border, brought about by the Protocol. RTE News understands there are 14 EU officials deployed in Northern Ireland, seven who are resident in NI and seven who are rotated in and out.
12/ In his letter Mr Gove said the EU needed to agree to far reaching changes to the Protocol in order to “stabilise” the situation in Northern Ireland.
13/ The changes include extending the three and six months grace periods, during which food consignments will be exempt from EU food safety controls, until at least January 1, 2023.

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More from @tconnellyRTE

3 Feb
Having read through @michaelgove's letter to @MarosSefcovic, a few things stand out:
2/ The letter is top heavy on the Article 16 debacle. The reaction in NI had been "overwhelming"... Gove writes: "I had expected a strong response, but the reaction was even more negative than I had anticipated."
3/ "Across all political parties, civic society and business organisations in NI there was a sense of shock and anger."
Read 28 tweets
3 Feb
Amid the hail of accusations that the EU wanted to put a hard border on the island of Ireland last Friday, it's worth pointing out what the ill-fated resort to Article 16 was about:
2/ Under the Commission's trade mechanism, any Covid vaccines leaving the EU for third countries would need export authorisations, ie to ensure vaccines were not being exported which were actually part of an avanced purchase agreement between member states + pharma companies
3/ Any movements of exports from one member state to another would NOT have required such an export authorisation
Read 9 tweets
2 Feb
European Commission says it "condemns very strongly any threat of violence against port officials in Northern Ireland who are simply exercising their duties and implementing the Withdrawal Agreement."
"The first and utmost priority is the safety of people." We are in touch with the UK authorities - video conference planned for tomorrow involving Maros Sefcovic and Michael Gove, and First Minister of NI
The situation arose before the events of last Friday [ie Article 16] - Commission says
Read 5 tweets
29 Jan
NEW: senior figure says a resolution to the Article 16 row is "in sight" and could come before the end of the evening.
Second source says Commission is working on a solution and Article 16 is "unlikely to be triggered"
Safe to say, IMHO, that the Commission made a mistake here and know it.
Read 4 tweets
29 Jan
The Irish government was not alerted by the European Commission of the decision to trigger Article 16 of the NI Protocol as part of its launch of the vaccine transparency mechanism, @rtenews understands
2/ Officials have spoken of their "shock" and "concern" at the move. The Taoiseach Micheal Martin has spoken by phone to @vonderleyen "more than once"
3/ Officials suspect the Commission's Brexit Task Force was not alerted to the move, or was alerted "late in the day". Maros Sefcovic, who chairs the Joint Committee implementing the NI Protocol has been in touch with Michael Gove, his opposite number, it's understood
Read 8 tweets
29 Jan
Here's the European Commission's first reaction to the publication of the contract, as per spokesman @ericmamer
"There are a number of plants which are mentioned in the contract we have with AstraZeneca, some of which are located in the United Kingdom...
2/ "...and that it is foreseen that these plants will contribute to the efforts of AstraZeneca to deliver doses to the European Union.

"There is absolutely no question for us that this is what the contract specifies.
3/ "We are convinced that this applies to the fact when we signed the advanced purchase agreement, the vaccines of course did not yet exist. They were in the process of being developed.
Read 7 tweets

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