Brexit

British prime minister wants a new defence accord as part of a ‘reset’ relationship

https://archive.is/AjJ9W

cross-posted from: https://lemdro.id/post/17761066

https://archive.is/xpale

cross-posted from: https://rss.ponder.cat/post/99589

cross-posted from: https://sh.itjust.works/post/31842328

The EU and UK face their first post-Brexit legal showdown as the bloc challenges Britain's North Sea sandeel fishing ban – a minor environmental case with major political implications.

In a significant moment for post-Brexit relations, lawyers for the European Union have taken Britain to an arbitration tribunal over a ban on sandeel fishing in the North Sea.

The case marks the first legal dispute between the EU and the UK since Brexit and could influence the Labour government's efforts to rebuild ties with the bloc.

The EU's legal representative, Anthony Dawes, addressed a three-member panel at the Permanent Court of Arbitration in The Hague on Tuesday.

"We are here today because the UK's prohibition of all sandeel fishing in its North Sea waters nullifies rights conferred on the European Union," Dawes stated.

The hearing, set to last three days, will delve into whether Britain's fishing ban violates the Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) signed by both sides.

The arbitration panel, composed of legal experts from France, New Zealand, and South Africa, is expected to deliver a final ruling by late April.

While the financial stakes are modest – Britain estimates a worst-case revenue loss of upto €54 million for non-UK fishing vessels – the political implications loom larger.

The tribunal has two options: uphold the ban or determine it breaches the TCA.

If the latter, the EU could take retaliatory measures if the ban is not lifted, putting British Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s Labour government in a challenging spot.

Britain has defended its sandeel ban, citing scientific research that highlights the species’ critical role in marine ecosystems.

Sandeels serve as a vital food source for larger fish, marine mammals, and seabirds like puffins.

While UK fishing fleets don’t target sandeels, Danish vessels catch them primarily for animal feed and oil production.

The EU, however, argues that the ban is discriminatory, excessive, and unsupported by the best available science.

According to the bloc, it unfairly restricts EU fishing vessels' access to UK waters guaranteed under the TCA.

As both sides make their case, the dispute underscores a delicate balance of post-Brexit relations.

As environmentalists and Brexiteers alike might oppose any concessions, the legal spat could make it harder for the UK to smooth relations with the EU.

Starmer is scheduled to meet EU leaders next Monday to discuss enhanced defence cooperation in response to Russia's aggression, as well as NATO's defence spending goals.

But beyond defence, Britain is also eyeing a veterinary agreement with the EU to streamline agricultural and food trade, signalling a desire for broader cooperation.

https://archive.is/2025.01.23-110549/https://www.ft.com/content/ae70737d-3e41-4ead-9679-d96b8f089612

https://archive.is/2025.01.16-094419/https://www.ft.com/content/d886f7f5-ec39-4645-a574-1d042dc5dd89

https://archive.is/2025.01.13-185200/https://www.ft.com/content/e140488a-2a1a-495f-a6b0-0e9e76832eec

The top-line costs alone expose the raw deal we’ve ended up with. The so-called divorce settlement from the Union tops £30 billion, and the loss in goods exports stands at £27 billion. UK food exports are estimated to have decreased by £2.8 billionannually.

Businesses have also been hit terribly. Up to 56% of dairy producers are struggling to find workers (as per an Arla survey). According to the Marine Management Organisation, seafood exports have dropped by 118,000 tonnes in the UK since 2019.

Over 16,000 companies with European customers have simply stopped exporting to the bloc. There’s also been a dramatic spike in immigration, and although 1.2 million EU nationals have left the UK in the wake of Brexit, net migration has soared by 2.3 million.

In fact, Brexit’s biggest promise was to control immigration – but we’ve ended up here. In total, 3.6 million immigrants have entered Britain since the freedom of movement laws were curtailed. Meanwhile, EU students at UK universities have fallen by a third.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/24109478

This is becoming like a yearly tradition now.

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/23265992

Paywall? https://archive.is/lFCl6

https://archive.is/2024.12.12-211246/https://www.ft.com/content/cc70d299-2f1f-470f-bc39-dbb656856fc5

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/22865526

https://archive.is/nrKkp

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/22750313

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.world/post/22315266

https://archive.is/lAqV0

Save you a click:

“Regarding Nick Inman’s request in October’s Connexion for people who are happier after Brexit: well, my husband and I, both of whom voted for Brexit, are no less happier than when we arrived in France in 2003.

“We voted for Brexit because we were under the impression that the UK would be able to control immigration and would regain sovereignty. That was a mistake and it did not work. However, since then, as far as we are concerned, life here is just as good as the day we arrived. 

“The only people who do not like Brexit are the moaners who did not get their own way. They were so convinced they knew best that many did not even bother to vote.
June Shute, by email.”

In short, then: June voted for Brexit so Britain could control immigration and regain sovereignty, both of which she admits it has failed to deliver. She sees no other ill-effects of Brexit, but that is because she lives in France, and not the UK – an opportunity that her vote has helped to deny to millions of others. And anyone who complains about the lack of logic in the above is just a moaner.

https://archive.is/2024.10.29-173813/https://www.theneweuropean.co.uk/welcome-to-the-new-brexit-wars/

https://archive.is/2024.10.20-170815/https://www.ft.com/content/4bb5c95d-7ef6-4d42-9456-57063766ea0c

cross-posted from: https://lemmy.dbzer0.com/post/30200340

He said that in the meantime it was essential for the UK’s productivity and growth to reduce the damaging impact of the Brexit deal struck by Boris Johnson “as best we possibly can”.

NHS would be hit by 'significant' costs if UK loses EU data status, warn Lords As another government yet again seeks to reform UK GDPR, legislators say data must continue to flow