Northern Ireland companies call for an extension of the Brexit transition | Politics

Northern Ireland businesses have called for an extension of the Brexit transition period in the region, warning they will “simply not be ready” for mandatory border checks on January 1.

They say they are the “rope in a tug of war” between the UK and the EU and warned of a “huge black hole” in information and a “disconnect” with Westminster and Brussels due to the reality of the Brexit controls that will begin in 43 days’ hour.

“There is a responsibility in both the EU and the UK” to make sure the Northern Ireland protocol works, Stephen Kelly, CEO of Manufacturing Northern Ireland told MPs.

While trade talks on Brexit remain in play, the Northern Ireland protocol, which will include border controls in the Irish Sea, will enter into force at the end of the transition period, agreement or no agreement.

Kelly called for pragmatism about cross-border shopping. “Selling a lasagna at an Asda in Strabane that could make it to Donegal is not going to pollute the entire single market,” he told the Brexit select committee.

Parliamentarians were also told that if the protocol were applied to the letter, a simple ham and cheese sandwich made in Britain and sold in Belfast would need two health certificates to pass through border checkpoints.

These issues were supposed to be solved by the joint UK-EU committee chaired by Michael Gove and Maroš Šefčovič, but Northern Ireland traders “have not had discussions with anyone” about the products at risk, Kelly said.

Kelly said Northern Ireland could be a recurring nightmare for the EU unless they make the protocol work and said they should be “generous in spirit” and give an implementation period for the protocol.

“The EU must make it work,” he said, but they needed companies to “make it work.”

“We are more than a pawn in the game and we say that it is a tug of war and we are the rope and that rope is unfortunately stretching,” he warned.

Aodhán Connolly, Director of the Northern Ireland Retail Consortium, echoed their concerns, saying

“We are very concerned” that the retail sector is not ready, as it was asked to make “structural changes that would normally take two years” in six weeks. “We need a period of implementation,” he added.

Victor Chestnutt, president of the Ulster Farmers Union, told MPs that he was only beginning to take in now that farmers in the region would be treated differently from the rest of the UK and that “all farmers” would need special paperwork. . to import second-hand agricultural machinery and products, including grass seeds and seed potatoes.

In a recent webinar, only five out of 140 farmers said they knew about the paperwork.

There is “a big disconnect between the government and farmers about what we should do.”

“With six weeks to go, it feels like we’re moving forward with both arms tied behind our backs and blindfolded. You know that if you give us clarity and time, we will get through it. But we need an implementation period or a honeymoon period, ”Chestnutt warned.

“We have a transition period, but we don’t know what we are transitioning to with six weeks to go,” he added.

The committee heard that there was not enough time to make the mandatory food labeling changes. There were also concerns that the agri-food sector would not know if it was facing the brink of Brexit on January 1 due to its thriving cross-border operations.

Northern Ireland’s shadow secretary Louise Haigh told parliament during an urgent question that the government’s “reckless approach” meant that “thousands of businesses still don’t know the basics of how they will trade with Britain in just six weeks. “. ”.

About £ 2.6 billion worth of agri-food products produced in Northern Ireland go to Britain, with 60% of that going through the port of Dublin, the committee heard.

“It’s a cyclical, circular, and integrated supply chain on these islands,” Connolly said.

The committee heard that no deal would block this trade on the island of Ireland with data showing that a “homemade pie” has “nine border movements” and Baileys Irish Cream had five of those border crossings. “If that [model] if removed, it means delays, fewer options, less freshness. “

Northern Ireland Minister Robin Walker told parliament that he was following a “flexible” approach and that the protocol was “on the way” to be delivered on time.

A government spokesman said “further measures to support agri-food traders will be announced shortly” and that it is “working to resolve all outstanding problems for supermarkets and other traders through the joint committee.”