23 August 2022
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Government must respond to allegations on goods movement and border control
THE EU has given the UK an extra month to respond to legal action it launched after the publication of the Northern Ireland Protocol Bill was introduced to parliament on June 13th.
The Guardian reported that at the UK’s request, the EU has granted an extension for the deadline to respond to infringement proceedings issued on June 15th. With a previous deadline of August 15th, the EU has now extended this into September.
The EU’s legal actions came after the UK government’s move to unilaterally modify the NI Protocol via the bill.
The UK is facing seven total infringement proceedings relating to the protocol and the June proceedings are related to: A first set of legal proceedings related directly to the UK’s purported failure to comply with “significant parts” of the protocol; a second proceeding related to the grace periods the UK unilaterally extended last year to SPS goods moving into NI from GB; a claim that the UK had failed to provide real-time access to UK data on trade movements required under the protocol.
These are separate from other legal proceedings, launched on July 22nd, regarding the UK’s alleged failure to carry out border checks on goods heading from Northern Ireland to Great Britain NI to GB, as well as its purported failure to implement EU rules on excise, duty and VAT on e-commerce.
The bill has cleared the House of Commons and currently sits in the House of Lords, with the government hoping to pass the bill by the end of this year.
The BBC reports that the bill faces a potential rough ride in the Lords once parliament returns from recess on September 5th.
Ulster Unionist Party leader Doug Beattie MLA, which has historical ties to the UK Conservative Party, has said that dealing with the protocol should be one of the next prime minister’s top priorities.
Sources: The Newsletter and The Guardian
Photo: K. Mitch Hodge
