Supply of Machinery (Safety) (Amendment etc.) and the EU Machinery Regulation (Enforcement etc. in Northern Ireland) Regulations 2026

Lord Elliott of Ballinamallard Excerpts

Monday 20th July 2026 Lords Chamber

[Lord Elliott of Ballinamallard (UUP)]

My Lords, I welcome the opportunity to partake in this debate. I thank the Minister for the detail he has provided. I do not necessarily blame just the current Government for this issue because it goes back much further than that. We have to accept that there were very poor negotiations after Brexit that led to the protocol and the Windsor Framework. Who have been the fall people? The Northern Ireland businesses have been the main fall people, which is extremely unfortunate. We need to try to resolve the outworkings of the protocol and Windsor Framework.

That decision has had significant consequences for many businesses so far, and this will be another one. I am sure that most businesses in Northern Ireland never thought that, after Brexit, we would be debating excavators, cranes and leaf blowers—let alone tumble dryers. For goodness’ sake: this is way beyond what any of us expected in Northern Ireland and what we expected to see as a reasonable relationship between the European Union and the United Kingdom.

In Northern Ireland, our businesses have been the fall people for all of this. So, how are we going to resolve it? This is not going to resolve it, because there is no assessment of the financial impact to the people of Northern Ireland and its businesses. Even though this Government have not been to blame for those negotiations, my issue is that I have not seen anything from them either that has tried to resolve the issues. As my colleague, the noble Lord, Lord Empey, has indicated, I would like to see them coming forward with better, more proactive solutions that are going to help this.

I have already mentioned the cost burden on Northern Ireland businesses, which has been highlighted. The Minister indicated the £16.6 million UK internal market package. But will that be sufficient for these costs? Does that include the cost of this particular regulation? Will it include the cost of the regulations that the noble Lord, Lord Empey, has indicated we are going to have lots more of coming forward? We have to talk to the people on the ground—they are the important ones—and those people have found it extremely difficult to find their way through this bureaucratic burden.

I do not know how that is going to be helped and assisted and what the proactive steps are. The Minister indicated that the Government are taking proactive steps to ensure that the industry is supported and complying with the new requirements. What I want to know is: what are these proactive steps? We hear so often that they are taking steps and measures. I would like some detail on that, so the businesses know exactly where they stand and what they need to do—because they do not know. For the next four months, businesses are going to be looking around to see how they can actually comply with the regulations.

The one other issue that I am really keen to find out is: what are the differences in the requirements between Northern Ireland and Great Britain? What are the requirements in that health and safety aspect in Northern Ireland that will be different to GB? I would have assumed that GB probably may even have a higher regulation than the European Union, or at least something similar, in health and safety standards. So, what actually are the additional aspects that are required? Unless those businesses are given that clear guidance and practical assistance, this is just going to be another burden.

This is increasing the internal divergence between GB and Northern Ireland, which is not only a constitutional issue but is hampering businesses and the economy. We are suffering in the economy in Northern Ireland because of it. We have to be honest: a lot of—or at least some of—our trade is with the Republic of Ireland. I do not deny that, but we need a more straightforward process to retain that trade with GB as well, which we cannot ignore, because that is still our biggest market. Let us be able to do that trade with the Republic of Ireland but also with GB as well, because if we stop that GB trade, that will have a significant economic disadvantage for our businesses in Northern Ireland.