The E.U. has agreed to have a simple Administration process for Northern Ireland importers
The European Commission today, i.e., Thursday, October 14, 2021, agreed to reduce the number of custom checks by 80% and paperwork by 50%, on goods and medicines arriving into Northern Ireland from the rest of the United Kingdom (U.K.).
This comes after several discussions involving U.K. and Europe. The European Commission wants to reach a permanent solution to resolve the matter. At the start of the year, the new post-Brexit arrangement – Northern Ireland Protocol, was introduced to help prevent checks along the border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. It involved keeping Northern Ireland in the European Union’s (E.U.’s) single market for goods, which created a new trade border with U.K. The Britain has been very vocal about these barriers.
As per the new proposal, most food products will not be required to be physically checked when arriving into Northern Ireland from U.K. The E.U. has also agreed to have a simple Administration process for Northern Ireland importers. More products and companies would be exempted from custom tariffs. There will be no disruption to moving medicines across the Irish Sea. In addition, E.U. will hold dialogues with stakeholders in Northern Ireland including politicians and business groups.
Taking it to twitter, the European Commission tweeted,
Today, we have proposed bespoke arrangements to respond to the difficulties that people in Northern Ireland have been facing because of Brexit.
— European Commission 🇪🇺 (@EU_Commission) October 13, 2021
We stand ready to engage in intensive discussions with the UK government, for a jointly agreed permanent solution as soon as possible.
Speaking on the occasion, the Vice President of the Co-chair of E.U. and U.K. Joint Committee & Partnership Council – Maros Šefčovič said, “I have listened to and engaged with Northern Irish stakeholders. Today’s proposals are our genuine response to their concerns. We have put a lot of hard work into them to make a tangible change on the ground, in response to the concerns raised by the people and businesses of Northern Ireland.”
The reduction in number of custom checks by 80% will be subject to a number of conditions and safeguards, such as the U.K. delivering on its commitment to complete the construction of permanent Border Control Posts, specific packaging and labelling indicating that the goods are for sale only in the U.K. and reinforced monitoring of supply chains.
The reduction in paperwork by 50% will also be subject to a number of conditions which include U.K. committing to provide full and real-time access to IT systems, a review and termination clause and U.K. Customs and market surveillance authorities implementing appropriate monitoring and enforcement measures.
The European Commission believes that this package of measures will make a real difference on the ground in Northern Ireland and addresses the Brexit-related problems. The package proposes flexibilities in the area of food, plant and animal health, customs, medicines and engagement with Northern Irish stakeholders.
It proposes a different model for the implementation of the Protocol, in which the flow of goods between Great Britain and Northern Ireland, in respect of goods destined to stay in Northern Ireland, is facilitated to a significant extent. This will be done through a series of safeguards and increased market surveillance to ensure the goods do not move into the E.U.’s Single Market.
Going forward, the E.U. would engage in dialogue with U.K. and Northern Ireland for implementing these measures
