Trade with the EU

The EU has failed to approve the Astra Zeneca vaccine and have said they need to take more time to check Ā it out. Now they are also saying that they want more of it delivered than the company can currently produce. That is a matter to be sorted out between the EU and the company. Some in the EU then threaten to interrupt exports contracted by customers outside the EU as punishment for difficulties in supplying sufficient vaccine under another contract.

 

Supporters of Ā the EU are always telling us they uphold the legal and international order. This looks like the opposite.

The EU are also making life difficult for business in GB, Northern Ireland and the Republic by their interpretation of rules and the Protocol.It is high time the U.K. legislated to restore the integrity of the U.K. single market. No goods going to and from GB and Northern Ireland should face any additional impediments compared to transit of goods within GB. Any goods certified to travel onto the Republic from Northern Ireland can be treated in accordance with EU import requirements by agreement between the EU and U.K. or by the EU at their border.

185 Comments

  1. Mark B
    January 27, 2021

    Good morning

    Indeed the EU are having problems and we are not hearing the worst of it. There is rioting in the Netherlands, a possible new government in Italy and more damaging economic hardship throughout the EU. Not that we have to crow about ourselves but, if we are truly masters of our own destiny as I believed we should, then we can plot a course more suited to ourselves.

    The decision by the EU to block the vaccine may have implications further down the line. International business do not like their trade interrupted due to petty politics.

    1. Cheshire Girl
      January 27, 2021

      It seems to me that, with friends like them, we don’t need any enemies!

      1. Denis Cooper
        January 27, 2021

        “Our friends and partners in the EU” is the standard formula from Boris Johnson.

        I would like JR to write something about this:

        https://euobserver.com/tickers/150727

        “EU upset by UK’s ‘unfriendly’ treatment of ambassador”

        “”It’s not a friendly signal – the first one that the United Kingdom has sent to us immediately after leaving the European Union. If things continue like this there are no good prospects,” EU foreign relations chief Josep Borrell said Monday, after the UK denied full diplomatic privileges to the EU’s ambassador in London. The step was “unacceptable” because the EU had full recognition in 143 countries worldwide, Borrell said.”

        But in 2014 the EU’s Court of Justice declared:

        https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Opinion_2/13

        “… the EU is, under international law, precluded by its very nature from being considered a State …”

        so would it not be illegal, “under international law”, for the UK to treat the EU as a state? šŸ™‚

        1. MaClyne
          January 28, 2021

          Every country in the world treats the EU ambassador like a stateā€™s ambassador.
          So what is the result of the UK refusing to do so?
          Far right Europhobes on sites like this cheer.
          Relations between the UK and EU, our biggest trading partner by far, are soured, harming our economy, and the rest of the world rolls its eyes at the UKā€™s pettiness.
          Thatā€™s Brexit! Smallminded ideology over trade and prosperity

          1. dixie
            January 28, 2021

            Not every country, the EU diplomatic status was downgraded in January 2019 by the USA from state to international organisation. That may change with Biden but the fact remains it happened and you are incorrect.

            Relations between the UK and EU were already soured that is why we voted to leave, if UK politicos, civil servants and the rest wish to survive in their careers they need to respect that position, act unambiguosly in the UKs benefit and not give any gratuitous benefit to the EU.

          2. NickC
            January 28, 2021

            MaClayne, You Remains need to make up your minds – is the EU a state or is it just a group of cooperating nations? And in fact our biggest trading partner by far is ourselves – nearly 70% UK GDP. Next in line is our exports to the RoW. The EU empire is third and last.

          3. Denis Cooper
            January 29, 2021

            Other governments may be willing to aid and abet the EU Commission in its plan to break the law – that is to say, the EU law which they themselves declare must always be obeyed, certainly within the EU and if they had their way also outside of the EU, as well as general “international law” – but that does not mean our government should follow suit.

          4. Denis Cooper
            January 29, 2021

            https://www.ft.com/content/bd9491fe-f9ae-4cfb-a966-8330bbe8643e

            “Maros Sefcovic told the Financial Times that the snub was ā€œvery important politicallyā€ and meant the UK ā€œwould treat the European Union delegation in worse terms than any other country on the planetā€.”

            NB – “… worse than any other country … “

          5. DavidinDorset
            January 29, 2021

            Relations were soured by the EU from the start of the transition period, and well before that, with plain bullying tactics and sneering. Remember the EU cakes offered to Theresa May with the two cherries on top ! We now have the City transacting Ā£100m of funding for start ups, more than the whole of the EU, London Stock Market partnering Switzerland, Nissan buildings a battery factory next to the Sunderland plant taking jobs from the EU, JCB has exploding orders, a battery factory creating 3000 jobs in South Wales, 63 trade deals plus the EU confirmed with progress in the Pacific region and Trans Pacific Deal likely. Federalism is slow, costly with all the extra layers of high priced inefficient management, as seen with the EU vaccine fiasco. The CEO of AZ has now published their version of the vaccine contract without the blanks as per the released EU version. Petty, and says it all about the rocky EU and federalism.

    2. MiC
      January 27, 2021

      Yes hindsight is marvellous, and the European Union’s officials are quite open that some things could have been better re the purchase of vaccines.

      However, unlike the UK they do not have, across the countries, anything like one in 650 people dead from covid19, on the other hand.

      It is not the European Union making business difficult in the UK either. It is Tory brexit, full stop.

      Displays of bald ill-will – such as John’s piece – towards those doing their best to fight this awful virus will not help anything one bit though.

      1. NickC
        January 27, 2021

        Martin, The only thing that EU officials have been quite open about is their bald ill-will towards the companies supplying them with the vaccines, and towards the UK. Much like you, in fact.

      2. Rob T
        January 27, 2021

        Given that the French arenā€™t counting deaths in care homes, the Spanish are under-reporting, the Italians didnā€™t start counting at the start and the U.K. is counting ā€œanyone who dies within 30 days of a Covid testā€ (which could include, for example, death in a car crash) then you cannot compare death rates between countries unless they have a standardised counting.
        Ours is over-reported (though may well be highest anyway)

        1. hefner
          January 28, 2021

          I am afraid your information about deaths linked to Covid-19 in French care homes is not correct. Since May 2020, deaths in French care homes are part of the total death toll (Economist, 09/05/2020).
          Interestingly the UK did exactly the same thing at about the same time, starting to add Covid-19 related deaths outside hospitals to the daily tally at the end of April, which allowed the original culprits (The Sun, The Telegraph, …) to crow about this discrepancy still prevalent in continental Europe a couple of days after it had finally been corrected in the UK.

          But as everybody knows it on this blog, we are the champions of the world, arenā€™t we?

    3. Andy
      January 27, 2021

      The EU has not blocked vaccine exports. It has asked to be informed of which vaccines are being exported. The two are not the same.

      1. NickC
        January 27, 2021

        Well, you did predict a medicines shortage because of Brexit, didn’t you, Andy? It’s just that you got it wrong way round, and it is the EU which is short.

      2. Fred H
        January 27, 2021

        watch this space. Still not approved the vaccine, but want to jump the queue of orders. Breathtakingly arrogant.

      3. rose
        January 27, 2021

        Don’t you understand bureaucratese?

      4. a-tracy
        January 28, 2021

        “Germany presses Brussels for powers to block vaccine exports” reported in the FT. These Countries managed to take much of our manufacturing base and give financial support to move it to Eastern Europe and key manufacturing areas in the West and now they want to put up trade barriers!

      5. Sea_Warrior
        January 28, 2021

        For what purpose does it want the information?

    4. Hope
      January 27, 2021

      Points accepted JR, but what has Johnson signed the country up to? Has Gove misled parliament over state aid rules? Could you clarify article 10 of the servitude agreement please. It appears the U.K. Will always interpret the servitude agreement I mfavour of themEU and I would not trustmcivl servants to do otherwise.

      Cummings should be brought back to sort out the civil service, unlike Johnson he has a backbone and does not need to be praised or seek popularity. He has never taken responsibility, that is clear with his misfit private life! He lied about fathering a child which might have harmed his career. What a monster.

      Johnson is a spineless jellyfish drifting hoping something might come along. His Oscar speech yesterday to deflect blame for rewards of NHS will not withstand scrutiny of his litany of failures. Failed to secure borders- foot and mouth, CJD, SARS, MERs all demonstrate an accepted procedure. Caused 40% of deaths in elderly by transferring from hospital to care homes without tests, three week lockdown lasted months and failed to work so he did it again and again! Introduced three tiers, did not work so I vented andmadded another! After ten months and forty million entering the country with 100,000 deaths decided to introduce flight restrictions and border controls! He has quietly extended powers to councils last week u til 17/07/2021 presumably for them to take blame for lockdowns rather than govt!

      1. John Partington
        January 28, 2021

        Spoken like a true Remainer. Are you related to Captain Hindsight?

    5. forthurst
      January 27, 2021

      You haven’t looked hard enough, Mark. All you have to do on the DT site is to select News, See all News, World News, then Europe, and voila! an article about the rioting in the Netherlands and what “the long-serving and widely respected mayor of Rotterdam, Ahmed Aboutaleb” had to say to the ‘rioters’ and their parents. Editors of newspapers and teevee channels have a responsibility to manage the news otherwise law-abiding Britons might decide to pass lockdown by smashing shop windows and stealing merchandise.

    6. Hope
      January 27, 2021

      This is the never-ending horror show of Johnson.

      Frost would appear to have done a reasonable job with Johnson capitulating at the end, unless a choreographed capitulation. Either way Johnson has to go. He is totally useless, untrustworthy spineless jelly fish. Throw him out.

      Changing his dates again about lockdown and children going back to school. Why is he destroying their futures and the future of the country? No reason for kids to be out of school, even nutty France has kids of all ages at school.

      1. Mark B
        January 31, 2021

        It was choreographed. Always is.

        Johnson will go just as soon as the polls head south and a GE in over the horizon. So you gonna have to wait a bit.

        The latest climbdown is over the vaccine. We paid for its development and the EU27 get to share what’s ours. Well, according to Alexander Johnson MP, they are our friends

        /sarc

  2. Peter Wood
    January 27, 2021

    Good Morning,
    The EU bureaucracy has made a pigs-ear of its vaccine approval and purchase arrangements, and knows it. It can ill afford this kind of very public incompetence so it does what it can to shift blame and what easier target is there than good ol’ Brexit/GB.. Loss of confidence in the EU must be mounting fast.
    When will the nations of Europe look through the facade to see the EU as it really is; an incompetent, bloated, inefficient super bureaucracy that poorly duplicates, expensively, the existing public institutions in each nation. Clear evidence of this: as another writer noted, why does the EU need a ‘diplomatic mission’ in the UK when each of the 27 members already has one.

  3. oldwulf
    January 27, 2021

    The Astra Zeneca CEO has given an interview.

    https://www.repubblica.it/cronaca/2021/01/26/news/interview_pascal_soriot_ceo_astrazeneca_coronavirus_covid_vaccines-284349628/

    The negotiations between the UK and the EU are ongoing and presumably, the diplomatic status of the EU is part of those negotiations.

    1. alan jutson
      January 27, 2021

      old wolf

      Many thanks for the link, interesting indeed, I wonder if the BBC will take up any of the many points raised by it.
      Probably not, because it shows the UK Government in a good light, and the EU way, way back in second place both in thought, action and in deed..

    2. Christine
      January 27, 2021

      An excellent interview with the AstraZeneca CEO. If only our politicians would answer questions so clearly.

    3. None of the Above
      January 27, 2021

      Very informative article from Republica, thank you for posting.

    4. Mactheknife
      January 27, 2021

      Good article and shows the political nature and ugliness of the EU. Blame everyone except themselves and threaten others. The CEO speaks well and makes the point that the UK were ahead of the curve and ordering vaccines before anyone else. Will the BBC mention this ? Nope.

      1. Qubus
        January 27, 2021

        And as far as I understand it, the EU hasn’t even certified that the AZ vaccine can be freely distributed throughout the EU yet, that will only happen at the end of the week. Please correct me if I am wrong. What a malign organisation, full of bullies and burearocracy. I should say that I make a distinction between my many friends and colleagues in Europe and the EU. I also understand that there was resistance to AZ by our French friends who hoped to persuade the EU to use the French vaccine, which has now been admitted to be unsuccessful.

        1. hefner
          January 27, 2021

          As you seem to understand a lot of things, may I tell you what I understand: the AZ vaccine has not yet been certified in the EU because the testing procedures usually followed had not been originally followed by AZ. EU said it, the CDC in the USA said the very same thing. There were questions of half-dose for some subgroups of volunteers, there were problems with the age distribution of the population being tested (far too few people over 65 to be representative of the population of most ā€˜Westernā€™ countries). Both the CDC and the EMA asked for more level 3 testing and an additional time to look at the results.

          The UK Health authorities were happy with the original testing, and appear to encourage the notion that two injections 12 weeks apart would provide as good a result as injections 3-4 weeks apart, although this had not been actually tested.

          This whole debate is an awful mix of scientific, political, and ignorant (nationalistic) opinions very unlikely to shed any proper light on the question at hand.

    5. Denis Cooper
      January 27, 2021

      “… presumably, the diplomatic status of the EU is part of those negotiations … ”

      How do you work that out? Are you thinking that the bureaucrats on the EU Commission may try to cut off supplies of vaccine to the UK unless the UK government agrees to ignore the 2014 verdict of the judges on the EU Court that the EU “is by its very nature precluded from being regarded as a state”?

      See above:

      http://johnredwoodsdiary.com/2021/01/27/trade-with-the-eu/#comment-1206717

      And also see:

      https://www.ft.com/content/bd9491fe-f9ae-4cfb-a966-8330bbe8643e

      “Brusselsā€™ Brexit enforcer warns UK over diplomatic snub”

      “Sefcovic warns status downgrade for EUā€™s London ambassador could further sour relations”

      1. oldwulf
        January 27, 2021

        @Denis

        Maybe the EU would be prepared to pay a high price to get what it wants….. but then again maybe it would not. The “diplomatic snub” seems to have legal backing … interfering with contracts and international trade, might not. Maybe the “high price” would be something else ?

        BBC News – UK and EU in row over bloc’s diplomatic status
        https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-55742664

    6. David_Kent
      January 27, 2021

      Very detailed interview, well worth reading. Thanks for the link. He’s diplomatic but what he says clarifies the situation in Astra’s current row with the EU over vaccine delivery.

    7. ukretired123
      January 27, 2021

      Excellent information thank you very much indeed.

    8. rose
      January 27, 2021

      A very good, frank account. He gives one confidence, as do Kate Bingham, Dr Gilbert, and the other people at Oxford. The PM made the right judgement at the right time.

    9. dixie
      January 28, 2021

      thanks for the link – an interesting and helpful background on some detail of the process.

  4. Mick
    January 27, 2021

    Arenā€™t you glad now remoaners that we left the Eu club, if we had stayed we wouldnā€™t have been allowed to vaccinate our old and vulnerable by now , so if you still think the Eu is the bees knees feel free to go live in your beloved Europe

    1. Andy
      January 27, 2021

      We canā€™t. You stole that right from us when you imposed your tsunami of pointless Brexit bureaucracy and made it impossible to sell cheese to Northern Ireland.

      And the dinghy people are still coming.

      1. Fred H
        January 27, 2021

        yes – it just shows you how popular UK is as a place to live and WORK.

      2. ChrisS
        January 27, 2021

        You can always apply for a visa to go and live there. If you qualify, that will be just fine for you.

        Best avoid Italy, Andy, as they have lots of older people like our host and me over there and we all know how much you hate and resent us.

      3. Fedupsoutherner
        January 27, 2021

        Well you had plenty of time before we left Andy. Bit like the EU and vaccines. Left it too late.

      4. NickC
        January 27, 2021

        Andy, You can. Nobody here stole any rights from you, and you are free to leave the UK whenever you want (subject to covid restrictions). It was the EU which stole our right to decide who, and how many, foreigners should come here. Your transfer to a foreign country is now only dependent upon the requirements of your destination country of choice – eg: the USA, Italy, Sweden. Which is as it should be.

        1. bill brown
          January 29, 2021

          Nick C

          More fake news

  5. Fedupsoutherner
    January 27, 2021

    We are always being told the EU are our friends. Really? Boris needs to sort this out quickly or give notice we are reverting to WTO. They are behaving like bullies. For goodness sake stand up to them.

    1. Leslie Singleton
      January 27, 2021

      Dear Fedup–If we were on WTO terms, which I would be minded to support, would that enable us to stop the EU preventing vaccine exports to us? (Genuine question). I don’t like them having any control over us of any kind

      1. Fedupsoutherner
        January 27, 2021

        I don’t like it either . They have too much say over many things considering we have left.

      2. rose
        January 27, 2021

        People can set up for production here.

    2. turboterrier
      January 27, 2021

      F U S
      Stand up to them

      They don’t know what that means.
      In reality they are not masters of their own destiny. Not enough are in the box to be capable of thinking outside it.
      The selection process I feel has a lot to do with the problem.

    3. Peter
      January 27, 2021

      Yes, agreed that Boris needs to address these issues or give notice that we go to WTO.

      He will not do that though.

    4. steve
      January 27, 2021

      FuS

      Indeed so !

      The best way to deal with any bully is with a damn good wallop. I suspect government knew some time ago the EU were going to get nasty with the vaccine supply, which explains why they took the decision to extend the time between shots. Nothing whatsoever to do with vaccinating as many people as possible, which was just a lame excuse.

    5. glen cullen
      January 27, 2021

      And weā€™re paying for the privilege of agreeing to and abiding to the WA, NIP and T&CA rules & treaty /deal

    6. MiC
      January 27, 2021

      Whereas I’m quite sure that the Continent’s people have no illusions whatsoever about the likes of the ERG and their followers here.

      And rightly so – but enjoy your victimhood wallowing yet again.

      1. NickC
        January 27, 2021

        Martin, So you’re saying the ERG are responsible for EU vaccine ordering? That’s novel. Or is it just a case of the EU wallowing in victimhood? And you with it?

    7. Timaction
      January 27, 2021

      Indeed. Appeasing bullies never works. Give notice to wto and move away from all previous agreements. It is proven that they cannot be trusted.

      1. rose
        January 27, 2021

        The Northern Irish Protocol also needs to go. In the meantime, the missing clauses in the IMB must be brought back.

    8. acorn
      January 27, 2021

      Reverting to WTO happens automatically for any good or service that is not covered by the FTA bit of the EU-UK TCA. The UK has posted its “Global Tariff” (UKGT) schedule with the WTO. That schedule replaces the EU CET (Common External Tariff) schedule we worked to when we were a member. A lot of goods the UK imports are not covered by the FTA but are backstopped by the UKGT (Most Favoured Nation) terms.

      The Brexit kicker is the flat rate consignment charges for Customs Agents/Freight Forwarders paperwork. Booze cruises to Calais with the now much reduced UK personal import allowance are finished. Small importers/exporters will be priced out of the game by the big corporates porting large consignments.

    9. Denis Cooper
      January 27, 2021

      The EU treaties tell us that they are our friends!

      Article 8 TEU:

      https://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/?uri=CELEX%3A12016M008

      “The Union shall develop a special relationship with neighbouring countries, aiming to establish an area of prosperity and good neighbourliness, founded on the values of the Union and characterised by close and peaceful relations based on cooperation … “

      1. John Partington
        January 28, 2021

        Yet to see any of the above. The EU’s main aim is to disrupt our economy and punish us for daring to leave.
        The vaccine situation with the EU highlights one of many reasons why we left the clutches of the EU.

      2. Sea_Warrior
        January 28, 2021

        Arguably, the EU’s behaviour during the negotiations over the past year was completely at odds with the spirit of the article.

  6. Lifelogic
    January 27, 2021

    Exactly right. Bureaucrats just love ever more bureaucracy, delay and indecision. They are the grit in the economic engineā€™s lubrication system. With lockdown they have welded the engine solid.

    If the EU are sensible they will adopt the one dose of vaccine first policy as the UK has done. Also they should Clearly vaccinate in order of vulnerability (a 65 year old man has a similar risk to a 70 year old woman). Alas the UK Gov/JCVI are, for some irrational and unexplained reason, not doing this. This will surely kill hundreds of extra people and put many more than this into ā€œOurā€ NHS. This for a given number of vaccine shots injected.

    The weekly deaths statistics released yesterday show excess deaths over the 5 year average for the last week as Circa 500 a day yet COVID deaths are claimed to be about double this. Clearly despite much of the NHS being shut deaths from other caused have been reduced by about 4000 a weeks. Perhaps If we closed even more of the NHS these figures would improve even more? Or perhaps the figure for COVID deaths are to say the least rather ā€œmisleadingā€ Good new is new cases have halved in the last few days. This is not really due to vaccinations as yet but more to natural immunity levels.

    1. Sir Joe Soap
      January 27, 2021

      What goes around comes around. If we’re sufficiently smart, as we appear to have been with our vaccine strategy (praise due where it’s appropriate) then we will have the opportunity to exchange our chips to recover from the stupid arrangements May succumbed to for NI. Happy to pay for vaccines for the Island of Ireland to get up to UK levels of innoculation but in exchange we need the Irish to see reason and pull away from Eurosclerosis and the EU, who clearly can’t look after them.

      1. Mactheknife
        January 27, 2021

        The Irish were cannon fodder for the EU in the run up to Brexit and used to try and bully the UK. Unfortunately the Irish didn’t recognise this, or maybe chose not to see it as the EU pours money into their fragile coffers. This is why the SNP are keen for independence and rejoining the EU – to milk the teat. Unfortunately the Scottish economy is a disaster, which was pointed out to them by the EU and they wouldn’t get in – no more PIGS debacle.

      2. MiC
        January 27, 2021

        “Our” strategy – thanks for the laugh.

        It is the NHS’s, not yours, nor the Government’s.

        Thank goodness.

        1. dixie
          January 28, 2021

          The NHS didn’t have a “vaccine strategy” and didn’t develop the vaccine, Oxford University/the Jenner Institute did along with a mixture of funding from private investors, AZ and the UK Gov via the Vaccines Taskforce.

          The only strategy the NHS has offered is to close it’s doors to prevent being overwhelmed by the taxpayers who rightly expected treatment.

        2. NickC
          January 28, 2021

          Martin, Yet you’ve been telling us for nearly a year that the UK’s covid19 strategy is being managed by the UK government. Changed your mind?

      3. rose
        January 27, 2021

        Good thinking.

    2. glen cullen
      January 27, 2021

      And neither the government nor the media are reporting that the majority of deaths are those aged over 70 and/or with pre-existing medical conditions

      1. MiC
        January 28, 2021

        It is reported constantly.

        Why do you make up utter nonsense?

    3. BJC
      January 27, 2021

      I imagine the stats will continue to rise disproportionately until Parliament demands to know the data on the primary cause of death. At the moment, every death where “Covid is mentioned on the death certificate” is counted as a Covid death. This is a deception, but why do it unless it’s to discredit those deciding policy? If things are truly as bad as is claimed, the stats will support it. Once again, Simon Stevens had his moment in the spotlight to present facts, without linking them directly to Covid, leaving his audience to draw their own (probably incorrect) conclusions. There should be a requirement for a precise level of detail from key influencers over Covid.

      As for the vaccine, there’s much emphasis and back-slapping over its distribution/numbers, when the emphasis should be on its efficacy, i.e. it’s purpose. Will there be a minister responsible for monitoring this, or will we eventually discover that millions have been jabbed with something that’s the equivalent of a placebo? I think we can all imagine the crowing from the EU if this was allowed to happen, unabated!

      1. NickC
        January 27, 2021

        BJC, That is exactly right. But the ONS are protecting their backsides by noting that the deaths “involve” covid19, not that the deaths are caused by covid19. The lockdown fanatic MPs are walking into a statistical trap, but are too dumb to realise it. Yet.

  7. Mike Stallard
    January 27, 2021

    The President of the EU Commission made a total mess of her spell as Germany’s Defence Minister. The Commissioner in charge of the vaccine programme in the EU, Stella Kyriakides, comes from the tiny island of Cyprus, itself divided, which is not exactly a major player in international politics. With people like that in charge, what can you expect?

    1. Fedupsoutherner
      January 27, 2021

      Imagine Sturgeon as President then.

    2. NickC
      January 27, 2021

      Mike S, Why be competent, when you can bully instead? That’s the EU’s normal mode.

      1. hefner
        January 28, 2021

        Wow, I love that ā€˜Why be competent, when you can bully instead? Thatā€™s ā€˜NickCā€™sā€™ normal modeā€™ of responding to comments he doesnā€™t like on this blog.
        Mate, you made my day!

  8. Ian Wragg
    January 27, 2021

    Why is Boris not taking a firmer line over Northern Ireland.
    They are an integral part of the UK.
    Who exactly is making shipment difficult. Is it EU customs officials or is it our own people.
    It needs sorting and quickly.
    I bet Farage would get it done.

    1. Grey Friar
      January 27, 2021

      It is your own people.
      Trade is difficult because Boris agreed to make it so in his oven ready deal.
      NI is not an integral part of the UK because Boris agreed to make it separate in his oven ready deal.
      Farage voted for that deal in the European Parliament.
      Every single Conservative MP voted for that deal in the House of Commons

    2. rose
      January 27, 2021

      Let us hope he is letting the incontrovertible evidence build up. Even Pesto said yesterday he could understand Brexit [in the light of the vaccine banditry].

  9. Lifelogic
    January 27, 2021

    BBC1 just now ā€œYesterday 1631 people died ā€˜ofā€™ the virusā€

    This is clearly this is not remotely true.

    1. Sea_Warrior
      January 27, 2021

      The COVID deaths figure seems to be of limited utility. The figure for those COVID victims in hospital on a ventilator is probably the metric that is most useful.

  10. Shirley M
    January 27, 2021

    The EU were late in ordering vaccines, they haggled and haggled to get the cheapest prices and now want to jump the queue over those who acted early and were willing to pay a fair price to get those first orders. In the real world, the best customer gets the best treatment and the best prices. For some reason the EU elite think they can treat their best customers (and suppliers) like dirt. This will, hopefully, result in their best customers and suppliers finding other non-EU markets.

    1. Qubus
      January 27, 2021

      They are big and therefore they think that they can bully everyone.

  11. DOM
    January 27, 2021

    Johnson sacrificed NI to secure a political agreement with the EU. Mr Redwood should direct his ire at those in his own party who will sell their souls to the devil and this nation down the river for any easy, convenient political life

    The Tory party like Labour have become a threat to our nation and our freedoms

    When can we expect more fascist laws against freedom of expression as proposed by Labour’s Law Commission? If your party is the part of freedom then I’m a turnip

    1. NickC
      January 27, 2021

      Dom, Yes, that’s true. The government claimed we left on 31st Jan 2020, and most MPs and the MSM went along with them (oddly, with a few government-supporting Remains too, like Andy on here). Now that we have a soft Brexit (not what we were offered, or voted for, in 2016) all the Remain bits – like continuing EU theft of our fish and the EU’s continuing control of Northern Ireland – are blamed on Brexit, rather than Boris and Remain MPs.

      1. anon
        January 28, 2021

        Bound into the Europe Defence Fund. Unable to prefer and buy British built defense equipment as allowed under WTO. Always hidden always stealth then they start the orders and bullying abetted by our 5th column.

        What was wrong with just leaving. Just revoke the treaty it has not been agreed by the EU. Stop propping the EU up with giveaways.

  12. Richard1
    January 27, 2021

    I have not seen or heard a headline eg on the BBC ā€˜EU threatens to break international lawā€™, nor I think will we hear any outrage in parliament on this from captain ā€˜forensicā€™ hindsight and the Labour Party. This absurd episode – caused entirely by EU commission overreach and incompetence – along with Macronā€™s foolish blockade a few weeks ago, show that for the moment at least EU supplies are vulnerable to arbitrary political interference.

    Agreed, we should not tolerate the antics in NI for much longer. Hampering of the U.K. internal market is a breach of the treaty and a breach of international law, such as the acts of union between England, Scotland and Ireland.

    1. rose
      January 27, 2021

      Our friends in Dusseldorf were very shocked at the French blockade. They said they all knew the variant didn’t begin in Kent.

  13. Nig l
    January 27, 2021

    Your government negotiated the details and your party, the ERG with particular fanfare, signed them off, desperate to claim political success and hold the party together.

    Plenty of commentators highlighted the risks when the invisible Gove, wasnā€™t he the first to praise Mays deal, hubristically told us all was well, nothing to worry about.

    So blame fair and square at your door, this blog has been saying NI was sold out for months. Why are we constantly fed untrue bollocks.

    1. Hope
      January 27, 2021

      I think we can safely say Gove sold out the nation on 17/12/2020 when he ran to EU to cancel clauses to Internal Market bill and Taxation bill. Now we see and read the folly of his and the govts action JR writes about today. Tories voted for the servitude agreement- Useless Minister Victoria Prentice admitting she never read it! Who would have her as a minister or in charge of anything! Just sign here, what an absolute dope.
      JR, did Gove and Johnson read their servitude agreement before they capitulated?

    2. Lynn
      January 27, 2021

      You specifically assured us that all was well – ā€˜people you trusted said soā€™. You attacked anyone in this blog who questioned Boris ā€˜dealā€™.
      So you are at least as culpable as all the ā€˜positiveā€™ people in the Tory Party. The words do not lie in your mouth to criticise.
      Farage memorably, in an attempt to get a Peerage declared ā€˜The War is Overā€™, when he welcomed the disaster with open arms and mouth.

  14. agricola
    January 27, 2021

    Yes we need immediate executive action via law to sort out unimpeded trade berween NI and the rest of the UK. It is an EU punishment IED left behind as they retreated to Brussels.

    The Astra Zeneca vaccine has not as yet been approved in the EU and propaganda ref., the effectivness of this vaccine to date from the EU has been negative. Tell them their order will be treated just like any other orders or get in the queue once approved. From outside the tent their order looks like a blocking tactic.

    Spain has vaccinated 2,900,000 plus to date. Word of mouth rumour in Spain suggests that politicians and influential businessmen headed the queue. Congratulations to NHS UK for carrying out a moral and logical programme of vaccination and continuing so to do. Any major company in the manufacture of vaccines and currative products have a worldwide customer base. Their moral responsibilities are to those customers and not to political influence when it becomes selfish and purely political. Politicians should be aware that manufacture can be switched to other plants or licencees if they so behave.

    The good news is that the fault lines in the EU, that the UK electorate detected, are becoming apparent to those still within the EU. When the EU is seen not to work in a pandemic, it begins to be realised by its citizens that it does not work in more mundane areas such as unemployment. There will be collective growing realisation followed by citizen led action. We are well rid of the EU.

  15. Roy Grainger
    January 27, 2021

    At this point we should be talking principally to the elected leaders of each EU nation rather than the bumbling functionaries of the EU. Brexit has already saved thousands of lives through this EU vaccine shambles.

    Off topic: I heard Ferguson freelancing again on the media – he really loves the attention – asked why the UK death toll was so high he came up with “we should have locked down earleir”. SAGE are absolutely fixated on lockdown – no mention of (for example) the older age demographic in UK, the high level of obesity and comorbidities, none of those occurred to him, just lockdown. Japan had no serious lockdown, shops and schools stayed open, they did very little testing, yet their death rate is much lower than ours – sort of indicates there’s more to it than lockdown.

    1. Caterpillar
      January 27, 2021

      Roy Grainger, adding to your off-topic,

      Background general health, background metabolic health (e.g. back in 2008 Japan started targeting everyone from 40 to 74 years of age for cardiovascular, diabetes, abdominal fat etc checks with supporting interventions where needed, checking 86% of population in a 4 year period), general diet and micronutrition, pre-existing cross immunity, latitude, humidity, status of elderly care, existing trend in mortality rates, recent soft/hard virus seasons (i.e. sign and magnitude of prior mid-year to mid-year volatility in mortality), when and in how many location virus entered, tracking to identify superspreaders not contacts, use of mouth/nasal washes, nasal mucosal temperature etc. all seem to be (potential) factors. Other things seemingly not made publicly known (or even known) are comparison of treatment protocols (what and when), effect of removal of human rights on physiology and psychology, effect of lock downs on viral load of those infected (enforced continuous close proximity), strain evolution due to lockdowns etc.

      At the end of June, mid-year to mid-year crude and age adjusted mortalities for 7/19 -6/20 and 7/20-6/21 can both be compared with historical data. Moreover it will potentially be viable to forecast the changes in trend in mortality caused by the economy, society and health wrecking policies. Thus a better evaluation of the (probably little, if any) good given the much harm that has been caused could be made. Also a fair evaluation of what would have been better and ethical approaches could be made. I think where appropriate people should be held to account, including for the removal of human rights, I suspect this is a reason we wonā€™t see independent evaluations, and perhaps the data will remain cloudy.

    2. NickC
      January 27, 2021

      Roy, There is no correlation between the ONS covid19 death toll graph and the dates when lockdowns were imposed and lifted.

  16. Dave Andrews
    January 27, 2021

    I’m waiting for the news to come out that the EU can’t block the exports, as the trade is legal, and their emergency powers don’t go far enough.
    If someone can point to the legislation in place to allow the EU to block these exports, please enlighten me as I can’t find anything. As we know, the EU is a rules based organisation and they will need the approval of the EU parliament and possibly a vote from member countries before they are given the required powers. Otherwise they will be breaking international law and we know how they abhor doing that.

    1. Fred H
      January 27, 2021

      The EU has moaned about the possibility of UK breaking International Law – and here they are wanting to do that themselves.

    2. rose
      January 27, 2021

      They will block it bureaucratically, saying they must be notified, and then taking a long time to answer.

  17. Jazz
    January 27, 2021

    ā€œFor the friendships which we buy with a price, and do not gain by greatness and nobility of character, though they be fairly earned are not made good, but fail us when we have occasion to use them.ā€ Macchiavelli

    We have certainly hosed the EU down with money, time for objectivity.

  18. alan jutson
    January 27, 2021

    I agree it needs to be resolved quickly JR.

    It comes as no surprise to me that the EU is trying its best to punish us, that is why a clean cut leave was always going to be the best option, yes it would have been painful at first, but at least everyone would know what the rules were from day one.
    We appear at the moment to just have a complicated mess, and a possible endless argument over protocols.

    1. NickC
      January 27, 2021

      Alan, Just so. The EU cannot be trusted to behave decently.

  19. turboterrier
    January 27, 2021

    Sir John
    The EU making life difficult for some companies
    What about the bigger elephant in the room the Chinese? When is parliament going to put a team together to identify the amount of key areas of our infrastructure that have been taken over by them? What is a little bit disconcerting is the bill passed at their last assembly that is incumbent on all Chinese operatives working abroad to report information to their agents as and when called upon. Chinese companies all but control the whole power supply and distribution Networks to City of London.
    When this country is seen to being pushed from pillar to post by the EU it could be forging for thinking we are sending out all the wrong signals about self governance . We need a leader and a cabinet that inspires, motivates and above all shows and demonstrates a united strength.
    .

    1. DavidJ
      January 27, 2021

      +1

  20. No Longer Anonymous
    January 27, 2021

    I am sure that Prime Minister Johnson, Matt Hancock and all their advisers have done their very best. Thank goodness for them sticking by their *voluntary* posts when most would have failed and walked away. All countries have done things right and all countries have done things wrong and many have been in a far easier situation than ours by virtue of population density, orderliness of the people and health of the nation. Both the BBC and the Church of England this morning seem determined to pin our failings on poverty.

    Neither the obesity epidemic nor keeping people alive into very old age (with other critical illnesses) was due to poverty. Fast food, ready meals, fags and alcohol are not cheap. No comment from the BBC or the Church of England about us being ahead of other nations in vaccinations – surprise surprise.

    1. turboterrier
      January 27, 2021

      N L A

      Your last paragraph says it all.
      The 100,000+ deaths can provide meaningful data:-
      What age groups
      Under lying existing medical conditions
      Obesity
      Nationality
      Location (population density)
      Social standing.
      Reason/cause of death on certificate
      Get all those facts analyzed and the 100.000 deaths would take on a totally different meaning especially how many deaths of fit healthy life styles victims actually died solely due to Covid 19

    2. rose
      January 27, 2021

      These usual suspects also fail to mention that a lot of this poverty has been imported at their insistence. First of all directly, and then by driving down wages and conditions, and driving up the cost of housing, for the natives.

  21. Bryan Harris
    January 27, 2021

    Why do we call the EU our friends when they act like the complete opposite?
    Why has Boris tied us so closely to them with his botched agreement?

    If I were PM I’d be ready to tear up the BREXIT agreement, for it is difficult to see how the EU could have been more despotic and awkward if we’d gone WTO.

    They’re still trying to punish the UK in any way possible because we had the nerve to demonstrate that the EU is far from perfect, but worse, we stopped paying them vast sums just so they could tell us what to do – Now that was a real atrocity the UK committed there in the eyes of the EU.

    1. Fedupsoutherner
      January 27, 2021

      Bryan never a truer word spoken.

    2. Fred H
      January 27, 2021

      Boris likes to add ‘ friends ‘ as the clearest form of sarcasm.

    3. rose
      January 27, 2021

      The problem is the discontent on the Continent as Swedes, French, Dutch, Danes, Italians, Greeks, etc say, you see, it is possible to get out. The EU have to prove it isn’t.

  22. ukretired123
    January 27, 2021

    EU just like China in denial…
    Trade deal with China…
    International embarrassment…
    Power crazy obsessed with “Always being right & Superior”.
    Misinformation specialists.

  23. None of the Above
    January 27, 2021

    Whilst it would be Statesmanlike to give the EU a chance to adjust their stance, it would be wise to make a start on the appropriate legislation now so that we don’t have to hurry the process. After all, we know how the HoL will react to such legislation so we need to give them time to absorb how the EU are behaving.
    I do not blame the PM for this situation as we had to give the deal a chance to work, it is the EU in which I have diminishing confidence and patience.

  24. steve
    January 27, 2021

    Sounds to me like petty politics with the intent to damage our country and make us suffer.

    It’s what you’d expect from the failing EU. The case for self sufficiency and total independence from the ungrateful cabal is further strengthened. Just take a look at what is going on in France & Holland, Italy has had a gut full, Greece is threatening to walk, the Eastern member states are not at all happy. It’s crumbling, one could quite easily predict a riot.

    Boris could make a smart move by grabbing the bull by the horns and ORDERING vaccines to be made in this country in the quantity needed. It can be done, and it should be done. We’re effectively on a war footing with this virus so war time like leadership and orders are what is required. We don’t need wishy – washy excuses as to why things cannot be done – just do it.

  25. glen cullen
    January 27, 2021

    I just wonder if the number of covid deaths within 28 days include influenza and pneumonia deaths and any death due to 28 day schedule ā€“ Iā€™d suggest the actual death due only to covid is about a third of the reported figures

    Also Iā€™d suggest that the actual number of covid positive test results are closer to 10% of the reported figures

    We donā€™t report any recovery results ā€“ Youā€™d think this government is encouraging the negative reporting

    Time to call it a day with the EU ā€“ Even with the new T&CA theyā€™re within there rights to call us a third country and protect themselvesā€¦..but donā€™t kid ourselves its no ā€˜special relationshipā€™

    1. Mockbeggar
      January 27, 2021

      They always advertise the number of new admissions to hospital each day, but never the number discharged. And are they talking about all admissions or just covid patients? Very good discussion on More or Less (BBC1 9.30) this morning about the number of deaths now compared with April. It rather blew a whole in the official figures.

    2. formula57
      January 27, 2021

      @ glen cullen – are we not overdue for one of your double-decker bus calculations on the number of Covid cases and deaths?

      1. glen cullen
        January 28, 2021

        No more double decker analogises ā€“ but lets hope the death figures start reducing

  26. JayGee
    January 27, 2021

    I guess this country has so much to be proud of during the pandemic. Proud on behalf of the 104,000 (and counting) people who have lost their lives. Proud on behalf of the NHS and the social care system that was so starved of funding for decades that we had to be called on to protect the NHS when it should have been fit enough to protect us. Proud of the inequality that has been allowed to thrive across this land of ours. Proud of the poor decision-making by government over which we have no control. It’s not as though nobody noticed the inequalities and the lack of attention to deal with them. So proud of all the above that we can still find a way to criticise and blame the EU for everything now. Ne’er mind, as long as the fish are happy.

    1. DavidJ
      January 27, 2021

      There is far more wrong with the NHS than lack of funding. Complete reform is needed.

    2. David Brown
      January 27, 2021

      I agree with you 100%
      A very well constructed factual response to another piece of desperate attempts to find excuses for Brexit

    3. NickC
      January 27, 2021

      JG, You think that the EU failure to order vaccines is due to the (supposed) austerity in the UK for the last 20 years? Well, I suppose that’s different to blaming Brexit.

      1. bill brown
        January 29, 2021

        NickC

        Move on

    4. alan jutson
      January 27, 2021

      JayGee

      And your solution with hindsight is. ?

  27. London Nick
    January 27, 2021

    You are right, but whistling in the wind. If the government had the guts to do this they would have left the relevant clauses in the legislation (saying they would only activate them if necessary), instead of grovelling to the EU by removing them. You, like the rest of the country, have been stabbed in the back by Boris the EU quisling. So what are you going to do about it? Nothing, I assume.

    1. Lynn
      January 27, 2021

      Well Boris has accepted responsibility for 100,000 Britons. Surely a resigning matter? Actually the deaths and destruction he is presiding over is much greater than that.
      Where are the men in grey suits? Or is this gentlemanā€™s club going to continue to watch the destruction of the British people on Borisā€™ wheel tutting over their knitting.

      1. Hope
        January 28, 2021

        The deaths at home figures way above average month on month. How many failed treatments will also lead to u avoidable deaths? Johnson should walk based on his acceptance of responsibility. Did everything we could , just outright monstrous lie.

  28. ChrisS
    January 27, 2021

    The fuss about a temporary delay in supplies to the EU of both vaccines would not be an issue if Brussels and Macron in particular had not caused such delays in ordering.

    The problems are with two factories which are both located in Belgium.
    Pfizer has temporarily reduced production while it upgrades their factory to be able to produce much more product. Over the next six months, the end result will be a huge increase in supply, but that won’t help the short-term pressure on von der Leyen in Brussels for her abject failure to secure adequate supplies of vaccines that actually work !

    The Belgium factory producing the A-Z vaccine is shrouded in mystery. The problem appears to be that, for unknown reasons, it is not able to use the ingredients as efficiently as the A-Z plant in the UK and is therefore unable to meet its production targets.

    The delicious irony of this situation is that the factory in Belgium producing the A-Z vaccine is a sub-contractor, owned and operated by a French Company, Novacep, whose HQ is in Lyon. Macron visited the firm’s HQ last year.

    So, the UK is threatened with a disruption of supplies from the Pfizer factory for two reasons :

    1 : because of panic in Brussels following serious mistakes they made in delaying the ordering of any vaccine and giving in to Macron when he insisted that they order an equal amount of a French vaccine that turned out to be a dud and is having to be re-engineered. It will be unlikely to be ready for approval this year.

    2 : the French-owned, Belgian factory, sub-contracted to produce European supplies of the A-Z vaccine is not operating as it should.

    Clearly, A-Z must be urging Novacep to follow the manufacturing practices used in their UK factories that have no such problems. That will not go down at all well in Brussels or Paris !

    1. Qubus
      January 27, 2021

      A very clear exposition.

  29. The Prangwizard
    January 27, 2021

    I’ve mentioned the economic warfare practices and threats from the EU on previous occasions. And where has been our response? Today apparently ‘Boris’ is according to reports in the Independent ‘appealing’ to the EU not to interfere with the supply of vaccines. In other words he’s begging. Just what we get in this country from our spineless cowardly leaders when we need leaders with backbone. But standing up for us is just not polite is it old boy.

    1. The Prangwizard
      January 27, 2021

      In the HoC this afternoon ‘Boris’ was asked by a Tory MP for part of the south coast of England if he was going to do anything to resolve the ‘red tape’ delays as one of her consituents in business could not achieve the exports he was hoping and planning for. ‘Boris’ turned on the bluster and repeated claims about all the extra money he had promised to slosh around. As for getting rid of ted tape the answer was NOTHING.

      Your government with its incompetent leadership is ruining us with its botched Bexit. ‘Boris’ never wanted us to leave the EU anyway.

  30. Fred H
    January 27, 2021

    The oft repeated dithering while ‘Rome burns’ has demonstrated at a cost of thousands of Covid deaths across the 27, that while the UK sprinted to go through hoops to be able to assess and order the vaccinations, the EU wheel-ess juggernaut trudged through the cloying mud and now wish to jump the order queue to cover for their inadequacies.

    1. rose
      January 27, 2021

      America First also got their vaccines ordered, produced, paid for, and approved, in record time, with unnecessary bureaucratic hurdles removed, and guess who isn’t getting any credit!

  31. weary eye
    January 27, 2021

    There is no doubt the EU didn’t cover itself with glory over the Vaccine but too write off the entire organisation because of that is simply absurd. As for making life difficult for the UK a consequence of the rules agreed by the Prime Minster who of course is well known for not reading the small print of what was once claimed to be the easiest deal in history. As far as I’m aware none of this was predicted by Brexiteers who believed the UK held all the cards, well let’s see the UK play them.

  32. formula57
    January 27, 2021

    “It is high time the U.K. legislated to restore the integrity of the U.K. single market.” – but for that we would need a Government that is on the side of the people.

  33. Christine
    January 27, 2021

    As the AstraZeneca CEO explained the UK submitted its order 3 months before the EU. This allowed the UK production sites to iron out all their issues and start producing the vaccine. The UK has sent staff over to Holland to help them produce the vaccine. This is a very complicated process and volumes cannot be guaranteed which is why the delivery contract specifies best endeavours. The staff have been working 24/7, even Christmas day. The Oxford vaccine is being produced at cost. Instead of criticism, the EU commission should praise the efforts the AstraZeneca staff are making and apologise to the people of the EU countries for their own ineptitude. As for the story in the German newspaper about it being only 8% effective, this is completely untrue.

    1. Peter Parsons
      January 27, 2021

      It’s also worth noting that some of the UK’s current supply came from manufacturing facilities located in the EU as that was how AZ overcame the shortfall that they encountered when running into (the now addressed) problems at their UK manufacturing facilities.

      It is AZ’s right and responsibility as a business to figure out how they deliver on the contracts they have signed, what clauses they have agreed to in terms of shortfall of supplies, and, in the event of a shortfall, how that ends up being distributed across their end customers.

      Meanwhile any talk of the EU restricting exports is just that, talk. Criticising before any decisions are actually taken says more about the people criticising than whoever they are talking about.

      1. Peter Parsons
        January 27, 2021

        I’ve now seen it reported that the AZ contract with the EU lists the UK facilities as primary manufacturing locations under that contract and that AZ used money from theat contract with the EU to improve those facilities.

        1. NickC
          January 28, 2021

          Peter P, The EU has not approved the Oxford-AZ vaccine yet!

      2. NickC
        January 28, 2021

        Peter P, There are no available facts as to whether “some of the UKā€™s current supply came from manufacturing facilities located in the EU”. Unless you have inside AZ information that no one else has? AZ may stipulate that some of the vaccine for the EU can be supplied from the UK factories; that does not mean the UK vaccine must be supplied from the UK.

    2. Fred H
      January 27, 2021

      If it was only 8% effective I doubt they would declare’ trade war’ on others to get it!

  34. Christine
    January 27, 2021

    Iā€™m interested to hear how you propose to legislate to restore the integrity of the U.K. single market with the following clause set out in the so-called Trade Agreement?

    ā€œthe UK has agreed to withdraw the contentious clauses of the UK Internal Market Bill, and will not introduce any similar provisions in the Taxation Bill.ā€

    It seems to me that with this clause the EU always intended to use NI as a stick to beat us with. Gove told us he had a plan; where is it? Why would our negotiators ever agree to this clause if they didnā€™t have a plan?

    This Government is weak and incompetent. What are they planning to do about this issue?

    You ask all the right questions but constantly get fobbed off with weasel words.

    1. NickC
      January 27, 2021

      Christine, Good point.

    2. Hope
      January 27, 2021

      +1 absolutely excellent comment. What did Gove get or was he threatened with no deal and capitulated? I suspect the latter.

  35. Briman
    January 27, 2021

    If Ulster was granted a Free Trade Zone status with no duties taxes being levied on goods brought into the area, would that facilitate the movement of goods. The onus would then be on countries receiving from N.I. to determine their documentary etc. reqirements. For the rest of the U.K. it would be a domestic transaction and any levies due ( import tax, duty etc. ) collected in the Province before moving onto the mainland. For the E.U. and Ireland in particular they would need to establish onward procedures, which apply to movement of goods from the rest of the U.K.

    1. NickC
      January 27, 2021

      That’s a neat idea, Briman.

    2. dixie
      January 28, 2021

      +100

  36. BW
    January 27, 2021

    Sir John, do you have any idea if the government are listening. It is frustrating to read such a post and then to see no activity from government. We must legislate as you say, especially to bring NI back to some sort of normality. Also the EU will always make it awkward at the borders as they still want to teach us a lesson as a warning to others. I thought in the agreement we had a period where minor errors in paperwork would receive advice for a period to allow haulage firms time to sort out small issues.

  37. a-tracy
    January 27, 2021

    John, can you explain what extra paperwork and charges would be incurred under WTO terms rather than this agreement because we are told on a daily basis by the newspapers people are incurring these extra charges (and a double-dip on VAT) anyway under this agreement. I’ve told my kids don’t order anything online without checking if it is made in the UK until this is sorted out.

    e.g. Prints and frames from Sweden costing Ā£71.74 DHL charged extra Ā£25.34 more than 1/3 more.
    Trainers from Italy ā‚¬490 del by DHL + bill of Ā£131 import duty.
    The Guardian helpfully tell people: If customs duty is due, the rate will vary depending on the exact nature of the product, there are a number of categories for footwear, depending on what the sole is made of, and how itā€™s attached
    * Added to that is the handling fee charged by the delivery firm ā€“ and customers rarely get to choose which one it is. The Royal Mail has a flat fee of Ā£8 DHL Ā£11.
    If you are “choosing to buy shoes which incur among the highest rates of customs duty at 16%”.

    1. acorn
      January 27, 2021

      The UK trading relationship with the EU 27 post Brexit, has reverted to exactly the same trading relationship the UK has with the other 136 non-EU members of the WTO. Anyone of them can tell you what systems they have to have in place, in the UK, to get their goods into the UK, and be able to sell them for a profit, to make the whole exercise worthwhile.

      Counter wise, the EU now has one more “third country” outside of its customs union/single market that it will treat exactly the same as all other WTO members, while taking due regard to any trade relationships it may have agreed with individual members that enhance the very basic, more restrictive and expensive, WTO membership terms.

      1. a-tracy
        January 28, 2021

        acorn – so what is this ‘trade deal’ that took one year to negotiate if at the end of it we’re a totally “3rd Country” treated no differently to “the other 136 non-EU members of the WTO” then that is “no deal”. Sounds like they bought a pig in a poke. All of this trouble to trade Northern Ireland within the UK for what? It seems all the benefits (6 months free range to the EU) were given and nothing was asked in return. The British public are going to have to sort this out for themselves and make wiser decisions on where to spend their pounds.

      2. NickC
        January 28, 2021

        Acorn, False. The “restrictive and expensive” terms are not from the WTO, but from the countries, or blocs (ie: the EU), involved.

    2. NickC
      January 27, 2021

      A-tracy, To check, you need the commodity code from the supplier. For “Sports footwear; tennis shoes, basketball shoes, gym shoes, training shoes and the like” (HMRC), the import commodity code is 6404110000, with an importing tariff of 16%, plus VAT.

      https://www.gov.uk/trade-tariff

      1. a-tracy
        January 28, 2021

        Thank you for the link Nick, I don’t use online shopping I prefer to buy what I can see, touch and try on. My husband, however, I decided to ban for a month in January ordering from Amazon Prime in solidarity with our closed shops!

    3. Sea_Warrior
      January 27, 2021

      I can’t remember the last time I ordered something from across the Channel. I wonder what percentage of the British population is being affected by these annoyances?

  38. Edwardm
    January 27, 2021

    Sir JR.
    Thank you for standing up for the UK interests and for making the point that we need to become self-reliant, especially from the EU. The EU’s continual, unfounded, unjustified aggressive stance towards us, confirms this is un urgent matter that needs to be pursued with priority. Pharmaceutical production is one area, another critical area is energy production. French and Chinese firms should have no part in constructing our nuclear power stations – use Rolls Royce and British technology instead. If the design and control of the safety and control mechanisms of a nuclear plant are provided by an unfriendly foreign power, they could be misused against us as a ready made nuclear threat. Get them out of Hinckley and don’t let them have Bradwell Essex.

    1. turboterrier
      January 27, 2021

      Edwards

      Exactly. When will our politicians get a grip and stop giving major infrastructure contracts to foreign government linked construction companies. They are leaving the country liable to industrial blackmail.

  39. Fedupsoutherner
    January 27, 2021

    Why am I confused? The opposition is slagging Boris off for the numbers of deaths yet at the same time they want restrictions lifted. Can we do that without having more infections? Boris was too slow but we are where we are and we cannot afford for our hospitals to fill up more. Our main hospital has now said nobody can turn up to A&E without phoning first as they are so busy.

    1. rose
      January 27, 2021

      The media and opposition keep telling us we all agree the PM was too slow in shutting down the country, but we don’t all agree. They never give the other side of the case. They also say we all agree the PM messed up over PPE. This is a flat lie and they never give the context, which was that the Chinese had bought it all up. The Americans couldn’t get it and the Germans couldn’t get it. Our government and armed services did better than most in the mad scramble. Then they go on about the test and trace, which was sabotaged by them, not HMG. They told everyone not to trust it, and surprise, surprise, lots of people decided to ignore the stay at home bit. Now they are demanding a timetable, but if they believe in the deadliness of the Wuhan coronavirus, which they do, then they must understand and give the public to understand, that we are being led by the virus. HMG is not witholding information from them as they are making out. HMG cannot predict where this virus will go or what it will do, and it cannot provide the relevant data in advance. We could of course “learn lessons” such as that shutting down the country does not appear to be a good idea, but they are not going to let us learn that lesson.

  40. DavidJ
    January 27, 2021

    Indeed Boris has let us down with his hurriedly agreed deal and insufficient time for proper parliamentary scrutiny. We would have been better off had he just walked away.

  41. David_Kent
    January 27, 2021

    You have a farcical situation where the EU , European Medicines Agency hasn’t approved the Astra vaccines but they are still complaining about the company not meeting the planned delivery schedule.

  42. weary eye
    January 27, 2021

    Online retail giant Amazon has halted sales of wines, beers and spirits in Northern Ireland as it prepares to de-list more products under new Brexit customs rules.

    The company is concerned that excise duty will now have to be paid twice on alcohol shipments sent from British mainland across the Irish Sea.

    Amazon suspended orders in Northern Ireland at the end of December, shortly after the UK/EU trade deal was published.

    Going well so far!!

    1. a-tracy
      January 28, 2021

      Then Boris needs to sort this out Pronto weary eye. As acorn said above this deal is not a ‘trade deal’ we are treated no differently in trade as the other third Countries.

    2. NickC
      January 28, 2021

      Weary, Northern Ireland being annexed by the EU is a Remain outcome. You are right that Remain outcomes do not work.

  43. Iago
    January 27, 2021

    17.25 electricity grid feeling the strain, frequency dropping, not much wind. Yeehah!

  44. Nigel
    January 27, 2021

    They have now granted equivalence status to US clearing houses, something they have refused to grant to the City of London.
    These are our ā€œfriends and alliesā€!

  45. Denis Cooper
    January 27, 2021

    Look at this nonsense, thanks to Boris Johnson:

    https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-55818519

    “Lough Neagh eels can’t be sold in Britain”

    1. Sir Joe Soap
      January 27, 2021

      It’s unclear who is stopping lorries in our country. Whoever is orchestrating these barriers within the UK which break the GFA needs to desist before there is civil unrest.

    2. MiC
      January 28, 2021

      You Picked A Fine Time To Leave Me Loose Eels.

  46. Lynn
    January 27, 2021

    JR Iā€™m wondering if the test and trace people have developed your website. As many has pointed out before, hardly anything works, including ā€˜save my nameā€™.

  47. Aurelio Zen
    January 27, 2021

    Your title is: Trade with the EU. Perhaps naturally, in the light of vaccine shortages in the EU, the commentators seem focussed on that topic.

    A few days back, the media was full of stories about rotting fish and meat at EU-facing ports. You have yourself remarked quite often on the issue of food miles. I’ve only “lived experience” of that, by which I mean gigantic lorries transporting seafood to Spain and France from the west coast of Scotland. Is there some actual reason why I can’t buy fish in Scotland at a reasonable price? What if the price of transport, in pollution and congestion was to the EU was subtracted? How about Welsh Lamb, or Scottish beef? Is there no market here? Or would it be an insuperable hassle to try to accommodate it? But perhaps it is just that the gigantic fish harvesting ships that hoover the seafood out of Scottish waters are Spanish or French. Then something might, for all I know, have to change. Taking back control could be not just strenuous, but impossible, I expect to hear. Is it true?

    1. rose
      January 27, 2021

      Very good post.

    2. Qubus
      January 27, 2021

      Why canā€™t the Spanish fish in their own waters? Donā€™t fish swim in the sea off Spain?

    3. Grey Friar
      January 28, 2021

      Great question Aurelio, let me explain. We produce far more wonderful lamb, beef and fish than we can possibly eat, so big lorries take the surplus to nearby countries which buy it, bringing money and jobs to the UK. Except not any more, thanks to Brexit red tape. Are you now understanding why leaving the EU single market was such an act of national self harm? Take a look at the food rotting on the docks, is that taking back control? We used to be guaranteed access to EU markets, so Brexit seems more like giving control away to me

      1. a-tracy
        January 28, 2021

        Grey Friar – If we produce “far more wonderful lamb, beef and fish than we can possibly eat” as you say, then why do we import so much meat and meat products from Ireland?
        Why isn’t the wonderful Nigella, Jamie and all the other tv favorite chefs teaching people how to cook our own catch?

      2. NickC
        January 28, 2021

        Grey, Let me explain. Only about 60% of the UK’s food currently originates in the UK. The supermarkets are full of food from around the world including German pork, Danish ham, Irish beef, “EU” fish caught in UK waters, etc. It is perfectly possible for the lamb, beef, and fish you are so concerned about, to be supplied to the UK single market instead of the EU. Thereby bringing jobs to the UK and saving food miles. And reducing imports, which helps our balance of trade. Being subject to the EU empire is obviously an exercise in self-harm.

  48. Pat
    January 27, 2021

    Sir John,

    In the current febrile atmosphere surrounding UK covid vaccine production, we are heavily dependent on two private facilities, one of which has already been threatened by flooding.

    I hope that security for these facilities has already been addressed at the highest level, as this cannot be left to private contractors.

    1. John Payne
      January 30, 2021

      I agree, and we must consider our position if a new Covid-19 variant requires new vaccines to be produced in the Autumn. Vaccines must be produced in Great Britain, so Government must plan production facilities now.

  49. Ian Stafford
    January 27, 2021

    It seems that the EU is saying that if a company does not supply them with (in this case supposedly) ordered goods, the company is required by the EU to break its contracts with other parties in order to remedy the supposed defect to the benefit of the EU. This is a new legal doctrine to me! The EU has even said that having an earlier contract with someone is not a reason for honouring that against the EU as such is the action of a local butcher. I find this is so devoid of legal sense and indeed common sense that I can only assume it is part of their trade war against Brexit.

  50. London Nick
    January 28, 2021

    Sir John, I see that the EU have now banned Northern Ireland from sending eels caught there to the rest of Britain! We can no longer even buy our own food. This is what Boris has done. Northern Ireland is now firmly under EU control. It is no longer effectively part of the UK. And what is Boris doing about this? Nothing. No wonder I consider Boris to be a traitor and the greatest enemy of the UK. Can you still doubt it?

    And what will you do about this latest development in Boris’s glorious Brexit?

    1. Carlisle
      January 29, 2021

      Nick, Mr Redwood voted for NI to be governed by the EU. That was the main point of Borisā€™s oven ready deal, agreed over a year ago and backed by every single Tory MP in January 2020. No wonder we Ulster folk are furious

      reply Not true.Read my speech on the Withdrawal Act and remember I did Not vote for the final Agreement. I have consistently said we need to legislate to ensure NI is entirely in our single market.

      1. London Nick
        January 29, 2021

        Reply to Sir JR: Yes, I know that you do not approve of the Irish Sea border splitting the UK and handing Northern Ireland to the EU, but you are not rebelling. Boris doesn’t give a monkey’s about your polite protestations. If you and the rest of the ERG (and indeed other true pro-Union Tory MPs) actually wanted to achieve something you would take ACTION.

  51. Mike Wilson
    January 28, 2021

    I keep reading, and hearing, about exports to the EU being either held up or incurring huge admin costs that makes it uneconomic to export.

    Is this all one way traffic? Are the massive amount of exports from the EU into the UK affected detrimentally in any way? If it is one-way traffic, WHY??????

  52. IanT
    January 29, 2021

    Should we assume that you could do a much better job Hope?

    Want to take on the responsibility of all that on your shoulders? Deciding the risks between shutting down the economy versus shutting down the NHS? Trying to calculate how the vast sums being borrowed will ever be repaid? Deciding to go it alone with vaccines when so many were urging him to stay with the EU.

    Effectively being accused of killing 100k people by media dolts such as the mournful Sam – Deputy Political Editor on Sky? ( an absolutely disgraceful performance )

    Would you really want to carry that burden? I certainly wouldn’t and frankly, I’d suggest that neither would you. So please stop whinging about Boris! He’s far from perfect but we could have had much worse at the helm.

  53. jon livesey
    January 29, 2021

    The EU has now invoked Article 16 of the NIP without consulting the Government of the ROI. So why, exactly, should we maintain diplomatic relations with individual EU members. If they don’t even control their own borders, there seems to be no point.

    Maybe we should upgrade the EU’s diplomatic representation in London, as they have asked, but then downgrade the representation of the EU27 members to consular status.

  54. John Payne
    January 30, 2021

    EU have exposed their insincere demands that there must not be a land border between Northern Ireland and Republic of Ireland by attempting to introduce a border when it suits them.
    Lessons our government must act upon are
    1. Assume they will attempt to introduce a border in future. We must react.
    2. Their well reported insincerity currently at borders are designed to be antagonising. We must react.
    3. The Government, British press and media must start treating and reporting the European Union as an adversary rather than a partner.
    4. We must put a sunset clause on the restrictions of our trade between mainland and Northern Ireland.
    5. About time Republic of Ireland recognises they have surrendered their Sovereignty to the European Commission, leave EU, and return to the Irish Punt currency. That would solve all problems created by EU and a swifter way to a United Ireland.

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