Monthly Archives: February 2021

A beekeeper trying to bring 15 million bees into the UK says he has been told they may be seized and burned because of post-Brexit laws.

Patrick Murfet wants to import the baby Italian bees for his Kent business and to help farmers pollinate valuable crops. But new laws that came into effect after the UK left the single market mean bringing bees into the country is banned.

Since the end of the transition period, only queen bees can be imported into Great Britain, rather than colonies and packages of bees. However, confusion over whether bees can be brought in via Northern Ireland has caused a legal headache.

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) said it was aware of the issue and is working with the devolved administrations to find a solution.

I am a passionate beekeeper, Ive been doing it for nearly 20 years, Murfet said.

He is managing director of Bee Equipment, based near Canterbury, and every year he imports large numbers of bees from breeders in Italy, where the climate is warmer.

For decades, bees have been imported to replenish stocks, strengthen breeding lines and as early awakening pollinators for fruit and honey farms in the UK.

But the ban could put this in jeopardy, Murfet said: Its a monumentally stupid situation for a country supposed to be standing on its own two feet and exporting round the world.

In an effort to avoid the import ban and abide by the new laws, Murfet arranged for his usual importation of 15 million bees to arrive via Northern Ireland in April, but said he had been told they may be destroyed if he tries.

I dont care what they think it should say. At present the rules are clear that bees from Northern Ireland can enter the UK legally. If the law intended something else, they have not written it into legislation, Murfet said.

He says his inquiries into the reasoning behind the ban have been met with a wall of silence, except an email reading: Illegal imports will be sent back or destroyed, and enforcement action (criminal charges) will be brought against the importer.

Murfet said he had already paid a deposit of about 20,000 for the bees and stood to lose nearly 100,000 in costs alone if he cannot bring them into the country.

He added: So far the department has overseen a policy whereby the UK is only one of three countries in Europe to see a decline in bee colonies.Fewer honeybees means less pollination, less top fruits and more imports.

Defra said bee health was a devolved matter and it was working to find a solution. A department spokesperson said it would provide guidance to bee importers and beekeepers as soon as possible.

It is the responsibility of the importer to ensure goods dispatched from Northern Ireland meet the definition of NI qualifying goods or meet import requirements, they added.

Visit link:

Brexit rules mean 15m baby bees may be seized and burned, says beekeeper - The Guardian

HOLYHEAD, Wales Beneath swirling gray clouds, Bryan Anderson leaned from the cab window of his truck to vent his frustration at the new paperwork that had already delayed his journey through Britains second-largest ferry port by half a day.

Its a nightmare, Mr. Anderson said, explaining how he spent hours waiting at a depot 250 miles away for export documents required because of Brexit. The delay meant he reached Holyhead, in Wales, too late for the ferry he planned to take to Dublin, and for the next one, too.

I am roughly 12 hours behind schedule, he said as he prepared, finally, to drive aboard the Stena Adventurer to Dublin to drop off a consignment of parcels for Irelands mail service.

Fear of hassles and red tape stemming from the introduction of the new rules governing Britains trade with the European Union that came into effect on Jan. 1 led to dire predictions of overwhelming gridlock at British ports.

But, so far, the opposite has happened. Apart from hardy souls like Mr. Anderson, truckers are increasingly shunning ports like Holyhead. They are fearful of the mountains of paperwork now required for journeys that last month involved little more than driving on to a ferry in one country and off it in another.

On Thursday, just a couple of dozen other trucks stood waiting for the same ferry as Mr. Anderson in a vast but almost empty port-side parking lot. Holyhead is operating at half its normal capacity and staff have been placed on furlough.

Its too much hassle to go through, Mr. Anderson said.

After months of uncertainty and tense negotiations, Prime Minister Boris Johnson finally struck a trade deal with the European Union on Christmas Eve. So when Britain left Europes single market and customs union on Jan. 1, it avoided the chaos seen during a dress-rehearsal border closure by French officials in December.

Yet the old system that allowed frictionless travel to and from European nations is over. Despite claims by its supporters that Brexit would reduce bureaucracy, companies need to produce millions of customs declarations as well as new documentation like health certifications for food and proof of origin for a wide variety of goods. Shipments of mixed goods like the parcels Mr. Anderson was carrying can mean a plethora of paperwork for drivers to cover everything being carried.

Across Britain, the impact of the rules has caught traders by surprise, setting off a chain reaction that has threatened some jobs and livelihoods.

Outraged over costly delays, Scottish shellfish exporters blockaded the Parliament in London in protest. A truck load of chips destined for a supermarket in Northern Ireland was held up for two days as the truck company sought to prove the origin of the potatoes they were made with, according to a British lawmaker. And more than 600 truck drivers have been fined for breaking a rule designed to prevent congestion that requires them to have a permit to approach Britains busiest port, Dover in Kent.

Under the new rules, truckers must log their consignments with the authorities before reaching ports. Relatively few arrive without the paperwork just 7 percent at Holyhead, according to the port.

But that is because many are stuck elsewhere awaiting papers.

The new system has also raised questions about the future of one of Europes busiest trade routes, between Ireland, which remains part of the European Union, and continental Europe.

The quickest route for trucks is generally via a ferry from Dublin to Holyhead, then east to Dover on Englands coast, and from there a short ferry trip to Calais in France.

Before the Brexit changes, that journey via the land bridge was cheap and reliable, required almost no paperwork and allowed trucks to drop off loads along the way.

But that route has been obstructed by a thicket of bureaucracy, and many companies are opting for direct services between Ireland and France to stay within the European Union.

Whether this reflects teething troubles or a fundamental shift is unclear, and the changes have been welcomed in some quarters.

Some environmental campaigners hope the drop in trade will be permanent and reduce the number of trucks crisscrossing Britain.

Port operators had expected a drop-off in trade as companies emptied stockpiles they had built in December in case there was no trade deal. The pandemic has also hit commerce and tourism, just as companies are adjusting to Brexit-era form filling.

But there are fears that the hit to ports like Holyhead may have lasting implications.

Very loud alarm bells are ringing, said Rhun ap Iorwerth, a member of the Welsh Senedd, or Parliament, for Plaid Cymru, a party that advocates independence for Wales.

It is clear that trade is down massively through the port, he said. I hope this is a temporary phenomenon but I fear that new patterns of trading are being established here and I worry for jobs. The smaller the traffic through the port, the fewer people you need to work at the port.

Virginia Crosbie, a lawmaker with Mr. Johnsons Conservative Party, said she expected that the fluctuations in transport patterns we are seeing at the moment will be short term, citing the benefits of the land-bridge route through England.

Others are more doubtful, noting that eight weekend ferry services from Holyhead to Dublin have already been canceled, while those between Ireland and France have been ramped up.

Given the choice, I think a lot of that traffic has switched to the direct routes, said William Calderbank, port operations manager at Holyhead, which is operated by Stena Line , adding that, while he expects much business to return, some of it will not.

To add to Holyheads problems, it is also losing business to ports in Scotland and northern England that offer routes to Northern Ireland, which is part of the United Kingdom, that generally require less bureaucracy.

It now makes little sense to send goods destined for Northern Ireland through Holyhead and then by truck north through Ireland a popular route previously.

And while companies should get better at completing paperwork, they face additional changes in the future. The British government is phasing in its own post-Brexit rules, waving most imports through.

But, from July, it will apply full controls as the Irish and French do now.

We are only in phase one of Brexit, we have another one coming in July, said Mr. Calderbank.

That will add to the burden for companies who already face complex regulations.

Andrew Kinsella, managing director of Gwynedd Shipping, a transportation company headquartered in Holyhead, described how one consignment was held in Ireland for seven hours while officials questioned whether it should be certified as a dairy product because of milk contained in cookies chocolate chips.

Holyhead is a ghost town, he said. You dont see the normal steady stream of vehicles every day; you are lucky to see a handful of trucks when the ferries arrive.

At Road King, a Holyhead truck stop, another driver, Rob Lucas, was still parked midafternoon at the spot where he arrived at 6 a.m. to await clearance to take a load into the port.

He had no idea when the text message authorizing him to move would come but did know that the delay had already wrecked his next days schedule.

The only way I can explain it is to say that everything used to run freely, there was no waiting for paperwork; but last Friday I was held up five hours in Kent, he said.

We are all stuck in limbo one of our lads was here for four days early in January, Mr. Lucas said. Its terrible, absolutely terrible, he added, and I can only see it getting worse before it gets better.

Read the original here:

Truckers Shun U.K. Ports to Avoid Brexit Red Tape - The New York Times

LONDON (Reuters) - Early signs of disruption caused by Britains shift to its new, less open trading relationship with the European Union are emerging in economic data.

FILE PHOTO: Lorries queue in at the border control of the Port of Dover, Britain, January 15, 2021. REUTERS/John Sibley

Although the biggest problem for many companies remains the COVID-19 pandemic, details of recent surveys show that Brexit is adding to the strain on the economy.

Manufacturers and services firms have been hit hard by supply chain and export disruption, according to data company IHS Markit.

British factories reported the steepest increase in supplier delivery times among the six flash preliminary Purchasing Managers Index (PMI) surveys published by IHS Markit last week for France, Germany, Japan, Australia and the United States as well as the United Kingdom.

This was almost exclusively linked to both Brexit disruption and a severe lack of international shipping availability, IHS Markit said.

For a graphic on:

Under a deal struck last month, trade between Britain and the European Union remains free of tariffs and quotas but a new full customs border means goods must be checked and paperwork filled in.

Using a phrase that has angered many business owners, Prime Minister Boris Johnson described the disruption as teething problems which have been exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic.

Trade experts think some of the extra cost and bureaucracy will be permanent. Proponents of Brexit say Britain will benefit in the long run by striking its own trade deals and forming its own regulations outside the EU.

Brexit disruption in the first quarter of 2021 was likely to reduce British economic output by around 1%, International Monetary Fund Chief Economist Gita Gopinath said on Wednesday.

Services companies - which account for the bulk of the British economy and generate a surplus in trade with the bloc - were hit this month, the IHS Markit survey showed.

Services exports deteriorated faster in Britain than in any other of the six flash PMIs published this month, bucking a trend of improvement seen in most other countries.

For a graphic on:

The service economy was hard-hit by restrictions on trade and reduced consumer spending at the start of the year, IHS Markit said.

Following the initial disruption, a truer picture of the costs and benefits of Brexit is likely to emerge over time, although many businesses are not hopeful.

A Confederation of British Industry survey published last week showed British manufacturers confidence in their ability to compete in the EU market has fallen to its lowest level since records began 20 years ago.

For a graphic on:

Reporting by Andy Bruce; Editing by William Schomberg and Catherine Evans

Original post:

First flashes of Brexit trade trouble appear in UK data - Reuters

EU data transfer mechanisms are in a state of flux, and the additional complications of Brexit can leave organizations wondering how best to navigate this current area of uncertainty. Several decisions need to be made: are new data transfer mechanisms needed following Brexit? If so, which one(s) should be implemented? What is the relevant timeframe? How can data flows be prioritized sensibly for remediation? These decisions will be influenced by other factors such as a need to replace Privacy Shield as a transfer mechanism, to supplement existing Standard Contractual Clauses (SCCs) following the Schrems II case, and to implement the European Commissions new SCCs once they are available. Added to this is the likelihood that data transfers will remain a focus for privacy rights activists and therefore regulators, and that data transfer restrictions (or data localization) are becoming a significant geopolitical issue. Given this complexity, organizations need to ensure they understand the issues, and adopt a defensible strategy for reviewing and updating their data transfer mechanisms.

Brexit has further complicated the data transfer issue, not least due to confusion about the date by which EU UK data flows must be addressed. Technically, the UK left the EU on January 31, 2020, but a transition period preserved the status quo, including in relation to data transfers, until December 31, 2020. Accordingly, during 2020 EU entities could continue to export personal data to the UK as if it was still an EU Member State. On December 24, 2020, as the end of the transition period approached, the EU and UK announced the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement. To general surprise, this Agreement provides yet a further transition period for data flows, easing the immediate pressure to implement alternative arrangements. This new transition period of up to six months is to allow the European Commission time to conclude its assessment of whether the UKs data protection laws meet the EU standard of adequacy under the EU General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

An adequacy determination from the European Commission would ease data transfer restrictions between the EU and the UK, removing the need for EU organizations to implement a transfer mechanism such as SCCs or Binding Corporate Rules to send data to the UK. This would be a welcome outcome for business, but it comes with the price of tying the UKs data protection regime to that of the EU. In other words, adequacy is not a one time assessment, but is an ongoing process. The UK is thought to have a good chance of being considered adequate, given that the UKs data protection laws incorporate and remain closely aligned with the GDPR. Indeed, if the UK is not successful, it is hard to see how other countries, particularly those whose data protection laws are not based on the GDPR, could succeed with an adequacy assessment. However, the assessment process also considers surveillance and government access to personal data. These areas are not within the competence of EU law but will be subject to scrutiny now that the UK has left the EU. It is possible that the UKs surveillance laws may be criticized, either during the adequacy assessment itself, or perhaps as part of a legal challenge at some later date. Typically an adequacy assessment requires approximately two years to conclude, but the UKs application is proceeding more quickly, and recent comments suggest the UK is confident that a decision will be made soon.

If the UK does not receive an adequacy decision, transfers of personal data from the EU to the UK will require a data transfer mechanism. Many organizations took steps in 2020 to prepare for this possibility by implementing SCCs, naming the UK as a non-EU importer for EU-UK transfers, to take effect at the expiry of the Brexit transition period. While the current SCCs are a dated tool, and are in the process of being replaced, for now they are likely to be the most pragmatic solution.

Transfers from the UK to the EU do not require a transfer mechanism. The UK government has already recognized EU Member States as adequate, and adopted the EUs existing adequacy determinations. Accordingly, transfers from the UK to countries such as Israel, Canada and Japan (among others) do not require a transfer mechanism following Brexit.

Transfers from the UK to the US and to other non-adequate countries will continue to require a data transfer mechanism, just as they did when the UK was an EU Member State. It should be noted, however, that EU laws (like the GDPR) have become part of UK law, and decisions of the CJEU handed down before 31 December 2020 remain authoritative and binding in the UK as part of retained EU law. Accordingly, Schrems II remains part of UK law and the Privacy Shield continues to be invalid in the UK. Finding a replacement for the Privacy Shield appears to be a priority for President Bidens new administration, and it seems likely that the UK would seek to adopt any new arrangement that is negotiated between the EU and the US. Similarly, when the European Commission adopts its new SCCs, the UK is likely to adopt a broadly similar approach in adopting its own SCCs.

Organizations utilizing SCCs should note that following Schrems II they must undertake (and document) a data transfer risk assessment, and add supplemental contractual provisions as necessary to mitigate the risk of government access to EU personal data, and to ensure individuals rights in relation to their personal data are respected. Further, EU regulators have signaled that significantly greater detail will be expected when implementing data transfer mechanisms, and that the days of generic, broadly drafted, catch-all SCCs are unlikely to withstand scrutiny. A more granular approach can be seen in the European Commissions proposed replacement SCCs.

The UKs departure from the EU has other consequences for data protection, in addition to data transfer issues. With effect from 1 January 2021, the UK is a third country for the purposes of the GDPR, and the one stop shop mechanism no longer applies. Organizations therefore face the possibility of enforcement by the Information Commissioners Office as well as enforcement by European supervisory authorities for infringement of the GDPR, for example, in the event of a data breach.

In addition, organizations in the UK will remain subject to the EU GDPR by virtue of Article 3(2) where they process personal data in the context of offering goods or services to data subjects in the EU, or monitoring their behavior. UK organizations that continue to do business in the EU may well find that they must continue to comply with the EU GDPR, as well as the UK GDPR. For now, the laws are essentially the same, but that position may change, whether intentionally or inadvertently. UK organizations that continue to process EU personal data from the UK will also need to assess whether they must appoint an EU representative, under Article 27 of the GDPR. Similarly, EU organizations continuing to process UK personal data will need to consider whether they are subject to the UK GDPR by virtue of Article 3(2) of the UK legislation, and whether to appoint a UK representative.

Given the complexity and legal uncertainty in relation to data transfers, organizations must ensure they understand the detail of their data transfers, including transfers to and from other group entities, customers and vendors. With those facts to hand, transfers from the EU to the UK should be identified and prioritised for remediation. Alongside EU-UK transfers, UK-US transfers that previously relied on the Privacy Shield should also be prioritised. Transfers that rely on SCCs must also include a Schrems II transfer risk assessment and additional contractual safeguards. All of these steps should be undertaken on the understanding that they will be an interim step, given the likelihood that the Privacy Shield will be replaced, and that new SCCs will need to be implemented.

Data transfers that rely on SCCs must also include a Schrems II transfer risk assessment and additional contractual safeguards. #GDPR #respectdataClick to Tweet

Brexit aside, data transfers have long been a complex and challenging issue. Now that data protection regulators, prompted by privacy activists such as Mr. Schrems, are actively enforcing compliance with data transfer restrictions, this is an area that requires ongoing attention.

Go here to see the original:

Navigating the Impact of Brexit on EU-UK Data Transfers - CPO Magazine

As UK grocery stores already suffer supply shortages following the UKs exit from the European Union, analysis from global consultancy OC&C Strategy Consultant suggests that food prices will see a hike in the coming years. The researchers expect that at least some of an 8% spike in the cost of imported meals will be passed onto the consumer.

Days after the UK finally completed its mammoth withdrawal from the European Union, Ocado became the first large grocer to warn of stock shortages as it was hit by staff absences linked to Covid-19, while hauliers grappled with extra customs controls after Brexit. The online grocer, which became a lifeline for shoppers wishing to avoid the health risks of walking shopping in public during a pandemic, warned regular customers that changes to the UK supply chain have affected some of our suppliers and may result in an increase in missing items and substitutions over the next few weeks.

Soon after, Lord Rose, Chairman of the supermarket delivery company went on to warn that the cost of added paperwork traders must go through following Brexit will be passed on to the consumer. The senior retail chief told the UK press that delays and difficulties in international shipping caused by added red tape resulting from Brexit will mean customers will end up paying more.

Similarly, Lorenzo Zaccheo, Managing Director of haulage firm Alcaline UK, also took to BBC Radio 4s Today Programme to warn that the customs changes would lead to a bloodbath for the sector, as delivery delays have begun eating into already-tight profit margins.

New analysis fromOC&C Strategy Consultants has similarly suggested the consumers could soon face a pricing hike as a result of Britains exit from the remaining bloc of 27 EU nations. Referencing what it called a raft of pink tape, plus new checks on the border, OC&C experts determined that three billion kilos ($4.1 billion) in prices for meals importers could be added to industry bills, in accordance with the UKs Meals and Drink Federation.

According to OC&Cs Will Hayllar, higher costs for importing ingredients or finished products, or changes to tariffs, could likely result in price inflation. Suppliers margins were already paper-thin, suggesting they will struggle to absorb the price rises, leaving the answer of whos going to bear the brunt of the changes unclear. It is either passed on or major efficiencies have to be found elsewhere, he said.

Estimates from the industry-funded Agriculture & Horticulture Growth Board present bills growing 5%-8% for livestock merchandise and 5% for crops commerce. There could possibly be a tempestuous set of discussions to come back between suppliers and supermarkets, whore ever-aware of the have to be price-competitive, added Hayllar.

Should this conclude in costs being passed onto the consumer, it could put even more pressure on the thinly-spread household income of the UK which had already pushed 1.9 million people to use foodbanks in 2019 alone. The double whammy of the pandemics financial fallout and the additional Brexit prices is already worsening the UKs meals insecurity to that end.

According to Mark Curtin, head of London-based meals waste redistribution charity The Felix Challenge, the group offered roughly 21 million meals last year, and that is anticipated to leap to 38 million in 2021. Were already going through big demand, Curtin elaborated. This can solely be additional exacerbated due to the necessity to assist people who find themselves discovering it troublesome to afford high quality meals.

Excerpt from:

Brexit expected to lead to higher food prices for consumers - Consultancy.uk

More direct ferry services between Ireland and mainland Europe are being launched to meet the increased demand from businesses looking to avoid Brexit checks with Britain.

Brittany Ferries has unveiled three new weekly sailings between the Irish ports of Rosslare and Cork, and Roscoff and Saint-Malo in northern France as traders seek more capacity on direct routes.

The new freight-only sailings will see three new departures a week out of Ireland with a ferry leaving Cork for Roscoff on a Tuesday, returning to Rosslare on a Thursday before departing that night for St Malo and returning to Cork before departing for Roscoff again on a Saturday.

The sailings are being announced as post-Brexit trade rules introduced on January 1st deter Irish and continental European hauliers from using the British landbridge due to increased customs checks and paperwork. More than 150,000 lorries used this landbridge route every year.

The duration of the new direct services is about 18 hours. That is longer than the timing on the landbridge route but has no border checks as the freight remains within the European Union.

The companys Cork-Roscoff service was expected to come on stream at the end of March but that has been brought forward due to the increased post-Brexit demand from businesses.

The new sailings will operate until the end of March when the scheduled freight and passenger services will resume between Cork and Roscoff, with two weekly sailings in each direction a doubling of the frequency of the service for this year.

Its clear that Brexit has distorted flows of trade between France and Ireland. Theres now clear and compelling demand both in Brittany and beyond to boost freight capacity direct from the region to Ireland, said Hugh Bruton, general manager of Brittany Ferries Ireland.

And Irish traders too are seeking direct links to western France. Were always listening to our haulier customers in order to best meet their needs and we look forward to restarting Brittany-Ireland services two months earlier than planned.

The companys new sailings come in addition to the extra weekly Rosslare-Cherbourg round-trip service that was introduced in mid-January. The company also already operates two weekly round-trip sailings between Rosslare and Bilbao in northern Spain.

The new routes bring the companys weekly sailings to eight in each direction between Ireland and France, and a total of 12 sailings a week linking Ireland with France and Spain.

Conor Mowlds, chief commercial officer at the Port of Cork, said the two new freight-only services from Cork to St Malo and Roscoff would offer transport options to importers and exporters giving more flexibility to Irish customers, ensuring supply chains are maintained.

The new services bring to 32 the number of direct sailings to and from Rosslare and mainland Europe as the south-eastern port benefits from record freight levels as companies seek to guarantee supply lines and avoid post-Brexit border controls and checks at borders with Britain.

Glenn Carr, general manager of the Iarnrd Eireann-owned Rosslare Europort, said the new sailings would give further choice and capacity alongside Brittany Ferriess existing services out of Rosslare to Bilbao and Cherbourg.

The launch of the route to and from St Malo is responding in particular to demands from traders looking to ship agrifood and fisheries produce between Ireland and northern France.

Continued here:

Brittany Ferries unveil new post-Brexit direct ferries to mainland EU - The Irish Times

The UKs cattle- and horse-breeding businesses could be at risk because of a government decision to cut funding for a Brexit inspection post for livestock at Portsmouth harbour, the local port, council and MP have claimed.

The local authority, which owns the port, has been left with a 7m shortfall for the facility, which will be necessary if it is to continue with the export and import of live animals after 1 July, when government border health checks come into force.

A council report, due to be discussed by the city council on Tuesday, said it was the only facility planned in the UK for vets to approve the import of live animals for breeding rather than slaughter, a business worth 10m a year.

The country needs Portsmouth to build this vital trading infrastructure, but this short-sighted government continues to withhold the necessary funding, said Stephen Morgan, the local MP and shadow armed forces minister.

Mike Sellers, the director of Portsmouth International Port, said it was a further 5m short of cash for the main border control post, which will conduct health checks on food and goods of animal origin, and another 2m-3m short on related projects.

It applied for 32m to build the two facilities but was allocated 17.1m after a 200m port infrastructure fund created by the government in the autumn was oversubscribed.

While other ports are privately owned, Portsmouth is in public ownership and the council will not seek to raise funds through local taxation. As a result, it has scrapped the plan for the live animal inspection post, something the National Farmers Union says could end the animal breeding business.

Were only doing these infrastructure projects because the government are requiring us to do so at Portsmouth, said Morgan.

Sellers said: About 9,000 racehorses come through the port every year as well as live animals for breeding purposes. But there is no business case to borrow funds. He said the only solution was for the government to stump up funds.

Morgan is also concerned about the shortfall in funding for the traffic-easing infrastructure, as the ports position is so constrained it is only 13 lorries away from the M275 arterial route.

Its a densely populated city with very few routes in and out of the city, so any sort of congestion as a result of infrastructure will have a devastating impact on Portsmouth levels of congestion and traffic flow in an area with high air pollution, said Morgan.

Brexit checks came into force on 1 January in the EU but are being phased in over six months by the UK to allow businesses to adapt, with the race now on to finish all border checkpoints.

A report for the Portsmouth council cabinet meeting on Tuesday cites NFU statistics showing that 30,000 breeding animals (pigs, sheep and cattle) are exported every year through Portsmouth, with a similar number imported, and without the control posts in the city a reciprocal post will not be built in Cherbourg, the corresponding port in France. This will threaten high-value exports including thoroughbred stud farming.

The NFU told the council: The absence of BCP facilities in the EU-facing port [Cherbourg] will mean that UK farmers are unable to export high-value breeding material to the EU.

The report says the governments infrastructure fund was substantially oversubscribed and after a deep-dive meeting with consultants and Cabinet Office officials, all bids were cut, including contingencies from 40% to 10%.

Sellers said the great irony was that Portsmouth was considered important enough to the nation to be a Brexit contingency route for medicine supplies by the Department for Transport, but not good enough for normal business by the Cabinet Office.

The government said the breeding sector was not wholly dependent on Portsmouth. It said infrastructure would normally be funded by the ports themselves and Portsmouth had received 17m from the fund.

A number of border control posts will be designated for live animal imports including Dover, Sevington (Eurotunnel) and Holyhead, which are the ports with the highest volumes of animal imports from the EU, said a government spokesman.

This article was amended on 2 February 2021. Dover is not privately owned as stated in an earlier version, it is a trust port.

Read the original:

Brexit: Portsmouth port bosses accuse government of withholding cash - The Guardian

The EU Commission has recently been involved in a row with the UK and vaccine manufacturer AstraZeneca over the supply of vaccines to the EU bloc.

In a step to protect the EUs supply of vaccines, the EU Commission suggested they would put in place export controls on vaccines produced within the bloc, with the UK left off the list of more than 120 nations exempted from the proposed controls.

The EU Commission has since rowed back on its proposal following claims it breached the withdrawal agreement as it effectively created a vaccine border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.

Whilst it appears the current impasse has been cleared, it highlights the potential for disruption to the supply of medicines into the UK and brings focus onto what steps are in place to ensure health and care providers are not left without vital medicines at the point of delivery.

Up until the 1 January 2021, the UKs trading relationship was unaffected under the terms of the transition period. However, now that the transition period has ended, new border and customs procedures will apply to all goods entering the UK from the EU, except for Northern Ireland.

General Trade Disruption

Border controls at UK ports are to be implemented over three stages to minimise disruption, but the Government still forecasts that the flow rates of goods coming into the UK will be down to between 60%-80% of pre-1 December 2020 flow capacity. This flow rate could be even lower at short strait border controls between the UK and France, at places such as Holyhead, Folkstone, and the much-publicised Dover Port.

To provide some perspective of scale, in 2019 UK ports handled 486 million tonnes of import goods, with trade from the EU accounting for 41% of this total. This continued to make the EU the UKs largest trade partner.

The threat to the timely supply of medicines, including Covid vaccine doses, is therefore very real, and providers should be prepared for disruption, especially in the first three months of 2021 during the implementation of the initial stage of border controls.

Continuity of Medical Supplies

The Department of Health and Social Care (DHSC) has put measures in place to mitigate against, and prepare for, the new border controls and customs procedures.

The supply of Category 1 goods, which include medicines, medical devices, vaccines, nutritional specialist feeds and biological materials, has been protected following procurement of the Government Secured Freight Capacity. This will support the health and social care sector and will facilitate the transport of medicines via alternate, Government secured routes.

In addition to the secured freight capacity for medicines, the DHSC has retained the services of three specialist logistics providers who can support the urgent movement of medicines and medicinal products to providers and service users, including rapid air freight, if the more traditional trade routes experience extensive delays.

An example of rapid airfreight has been seen when military aircraft were used to secure the import of the Pfizer vaccine from Belgium to the UK, in accordance with the terms of the withdrawal agreement.

Buffer Stocks

As part of the Governments contingency plan, it has been advising UK medicinal suppliers to hold additional stock within the UK to protect against disruption. Providers and service users should not stockpile locally, however.

The DHSC continues to work alongside NHS Supply Chain to prepare a buffer of stock for fast moving clinical consumables and medical devices. In 2019, the DHSC said that it was on course to achieve its target of maintaining six weeks worth of buffered stock by the end of the transition period.

Since 1 January 2021, there have been limited reports of lorry drivers being turned away from ports for not having the correct paperwork. Whilst limited, this has caused concerns among logistics providers that more severe problems could occur as trade flow increases with the easing of Covid restrictions.

How this will directly affect the supply of medicines to UK medicinal suppliers, and onto front line providers, is not yet clear. The Governments reluctance to guarantee a level of supply does suggest that delays and strain to some extent are expected in the short term.

The DHSC is confident the buffering measures it has put in place will prevent an acute shortage of medicines to the health and social care sector, although some disruption is expected. Providers and service users are asked to have confidence in this procedure and have been discouraged from local stockpiling of medicines as this could cause shortages in other areas.

Shortage Management

Should a shortage of medicinal supplies occur because of the UKs new relationship with the EU then suppliers will raise this through the established routes.

The DHSC has stepped up its National Supply Disruption Response to assist with the demands on supply and they insist the usual business approach is suitable to address shortages following the end of the transition period.

If the Secretary of State for Health and Social Care is of the opinion (following consultation with medical experts) that there is, or may be, a serious shortage of medicine then they can decide to issue a Serious Shortage Protocol. This will provide an exception to the rule that prescription medicines may only be supplied in accordance with said prescription.

A Serious Shortage Protocol is intended to speed up service user access to appropriate treatment by affording pharmacies the ability to dispense an alternate medicine to that prescribed in line with a protocol, without having to go back to the prescriber first.

Such protocols will be used alongside well-established processes for managing shortages in collaboration with manufacturers, suppliers, and clinicians.

Conclusion

The UK continues to import the Belgium-manufactured Pfizer vaccine and so any export controls could potentially affect the UK governments vaccination programme.

Notwithstanding export controls, the post-transition flow of goods was always likely to slow as new border control measures were put in place.

However, it appears the measures discussed above have so far prevented an acute shortage of medicines for health and care providers at the sharp end, whilst those providers should be aware of what the DHSC has put in place should a shortage occur.

As the number of people vaccinated nears 9 million (at the time of writing), the UK continues to import doses of the Pfizer vaccine tariff free and in accordance with the withdrawal agreement.

Read more:

Post Brexit Supply of Medicines - Lexology

Its been a month since the UK formally left the European Union and, for many consumers and small companies, the realisation of what Brexit actually means is hitting home. In this weeks cover story, Toby Helm meets the business owners who have realised that, in order for trade with customers in EU countries to remain viable, they will have to set up shop in the bloc at the expense of investing in the UK. As the complicated realities of post-Brexit life sink in for the public, will they also sink in for the politicians that pushed Britains departure?

We reported last year on the disaster in Manaus, the capital of Brazils Amazonas state, where nearly 100 people a day were dying of Covid. Sadly, the city is facing a second coronavirus disaster, with hospitals running out of oxygen and a new strain of the virus, which has already spread beyond the city. This week, Tom Phillips reports on the massacre in a city that has already suffered more than most. We also look at how a lockdown in Chad has become tangled with the politics of a presidential election, before Nick Evershed crunches the numbers on what the South African and UK Covid strains mean for the spread of the virus.

Donald Trump left the Oval Office last week and Joe Biden is the 46th US president. Suddenly things feel much calmer, at least until Trumps impeachment trial begins on 8 February. Richard Wolffe reports on the work Biden is doing in his first few weeks and who the key advisers surrounding him are. We also look at what the US rejoining the Paris climate accord means for the planet and Liesl Schillinger salutes the poetry of Amanda Gorman, who stole the show at Bidens inauguration with her recital of The Hill We Climb.

Away from the news, Tom Lamont asks an important question: has video assistance for referees ruined elite football? Since the introduction of VAR, discussions about the failings (or benefits) of the technology have dominated the discourse around the game as much as fans previously talked about real referees. Has a little bit of magic been torn from the heart of the beautiful game?

We also feature a great piece of reporting by Rolling Stone writer John Colapinto who injured his voice in a tragic, er, singing accident and in trying to repair his vocal cords went on a quest discover how vital our ability to speak is to our understanding of what it is to be human.

Get the magazine delivered at home here

See the rest here:

The reality of Brexit - inside the 29 January edition of the Guardian Weekly - The Guardian

The UK left the European Union on 1 January 2021 and the Federal Association of the German Confectionery Industry (BDSI) said every third company that regularly exports its products reports considerable problems in supplying the British market since Brexit.

Almost 10% of German confectionery exports go to Great Britain, making it the second most important export market for the German confectionery industry. Within the German food industry, the confectionery industry is the most important exporter to Great Britain and represents a fifth of the export value of German food to the UK, according to the BDSI.

"The negotiated rules of origin for confectionery deviate considerably from the previous rules of origin and contribute to further complicating duty-free deliveries," said Dr Carsten Bernoth, General Manager of the BDSI.

"The EU Commission and the member states may protect many interests in the field of agricultural products, but they are doing this clearly at the expense of the medium-sized processing industry, which ensures the highest added value for the EU, but can now fall back on no uniform rules of origin for its export activities and is drowning in bureaucracy.

With several deliveries of goods via the English Channel every week, 58% of the companies say the very complex new customs formalities are the greatest challenge for a smooth process in logistics.

The BDSI reports almost one in 10 (9%) of its members completely stopped supplying the British market at the start of the year. It also said approximately 15% of companies fear their products will not be available, temporarily, on the shelves of UK grocery stores due to the logistics problems.

The German confectionery companies named driver shortage and health entry restrictions (especially due to the coronavirus crisis) as further major challenges.

Tracey Hughes, managing director of leading UK ingredients distributor Henley Bridge told this publication:The main problem weve had is that our European suppliers have underestimated the lack of consistency with documentation across different customer clearance agencies and transport companies.

"Weve found ourselves completing the paperwork for a supplier, only to find that they have switched to another haulier for a subsequent shipment, so weve had to start the paperwork from scratch. There has been a lot of additional paperwork to complete, which has delayed some shipments, but, fortunately, we pre-stock built as part of our Brexit contingency plan, so it hasnt really impacted us.

Freight volumes in general moving between the UK and EU were down 38% in the third week of January compared with the same week a year ago, according to latest truck movement data.

Ben Fletcher, Policy Director of Make UK, which represents British manufacturers, including the food and drink sector, said importers and exporters have been unable to move supplies because of new red tape.

A survey by its member shows 60% of companies that said there were ready for Brexit now experience disruption and are also finding supply chains significantly impacted.

There is real anger and incredible frustration for people who either import or export that they are simply not able to move stuff. It is just incredibly difficult to get the paperwork right and there have been very low levels of support from government, he said.

British high street store, Marks & Spencer, reported the problems with Percy Pig confectionery, which is made in Germany, imported to the UK and re-exported to the Republic of Ireland (which is still in the EU), making them liable for import tax and causing a shortage in shops.

Hughes said:There have also been issues with importing goods into the UK which we then had to ship to Northern Ireland and, from there, were being shipped into the Republic of Ireland, which was resulting in an additional tariff charge and therefore having a financial impact on customers.

Glasgow-based Bradfords Bakers is a family-owned e-commerce company that deliver gifts UK wide and into Europe.

Brexit has complicated the way in which it conducts business with suppliers and with the added pressure of lockdown due to the coronavirus.

Director James McGoldrick said:"Nothing has changed on our end we still create our traditional hampers. What has changed is our suppliers regulations in relation to delivering to us the packaging we need, which accounts for 60% of all the packaging we use in the business.

"There are suppliers in Europe that ship worldwide, who are not facing issues like ours are. When the UK left the EU and regulations changed, these suppliers started delivering products to the UK the way they normally would to the USA, for example. Those rules and regulations were already in place for them, they just had to apply them to their customers in the UK. However, they are still facing some delays from the customs check points.

"Our suppliers in Italy and Germany, however, are accustomed to delivering products to Europe. They are still grappling with how they can make sure our needs are met, because there are brand new procedures in place that were not before. They need to complete customs declarations and paperwork that they never needed previously to ensure that our orders can be imported correctly. They need to receive new training on how to make declarations to ensure everything is done properly."

Some German companies fear that further tightening of the coronavirus-related entry regulations will cause additional problems for a smooth logistics process.

The BDSI said problems at the border with the UK will persist even after the coronavirus crisis has ended and customs clearance has been brought in: German-British trade will continue to be characterized by high administrative hurdles, it said.

Follow this link:

Brexit: import and exports of confectionery hit as EU and UK firms grapple with new rules - ConfectioneryNews.com