Movement of Goods (Northern Ireland to Great Britain) (Animals, Feed and Food, Plant Health etc.) (Transitory Provision and Miscellaneous Amendments) Regulations 2024
Lord McCrea of Magherafelt and Cookstown Excerpts(1 month, 1 week ago)
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Lord McCrea of Magherafelt and Cookstown (DUP)
My Lords, I rise to support my noble friend Lord Dodds in his regret amendment: that this House regrets that the draft regulations implement the Northern Ireland protocol and Windsor Framework, which prevent Northern Ireland being a full part of the United Kingdom’s internal market and undermine the democratic and constitutional rights of the people of Northern Ireland.
I acknowledge and appreciate that many noble Lords have little interest in how the protocol and the Windsor Framework affect the people of Northern Ireland. They have their own mindset and, as far as they are concerned, it is done, it is over and there is nothing that is going to change it.
Of course, it is true that, as I said, there are those who have little interest. But, to those of us who are being denied our full democratic and constitutional rights, it is of major importance, and this wrong must be put right. I know that noble Lords may be dissatisfied with—perhaps even sick of—these debates coming time after time. I suggest that, until this is put right, this is not going away. We cannot close our minds or our hearts to it. Others have, but those who live in Northern Ireland, certainly from a unionist perspective, are not willing to let this go away.
I am amazed at those who say that they must at all costs protect the Belfast agreement. I know that, on many occasions, many in this House stood up one after the other to say how it is so vitally important that nothing is done in any shape or form that will undermine the bedrock of the Belfast agreement. But I remind noble Lords that at the heart of the Belfast agreement is the cross-community support for key or controversial decisions affecting Northern Ireland. Yet those same noble Lords can sit content with measures forced on the unionist community without its consent.
I assure noble Lords that, if measures were being forced on the nationalist or republican community against their consent, those in this very House who remain silent would be very vocal in their objections. So, if they believe that the Belfast agreement with the cross-community consent at the heart of it is so vital for the security, safety and prosperity of Northern Ireland, why are they not speaking up now, or whenever there has been a denial of that cross-community vote?
The protocol and the Windsor Framework place Northern Ireland under EU single market laws for goods, as though Northern Ireland was still in the EU, without any elected representative from Northern Ireland having any power to make those laws. They also destroy Northern Ireland’s position within the United Kingdom internal market with respect to goods. Today, the Northern Ireland Assembly will vote to extend the Windsor Framework, but the safeguard of cross-community support was cast aside for the so-called new name on the block, the democratic consent mechanism. That is majority rule.
For 50 years, majority rule has been cast aside. It was not permitted. Whenever unionists had a majority, “No, no, no, we can’t have it”. We must ensure the bedrock of our future is cross-community consent. Of course, the EU fanatics, supported by the nationalist and republican Assembly Members, are able to get the simple majority, reminding unionists that Stormont is now a cold House for those with unionist convictions. So much for the Belfast agreement. I warn this House that sending the message that our constitutional rights within the United Kingdom can be undermined by the blatant repudiation of the Belfast agreement at Stormont today—with the support of many in this House—does nothing to aid the stability that every one of us craves for Northern Ireland.
A colleague of mine in Stormont, Jonathan Buckley, rightly said today that the vote was
“an illusion of democracy … a rigged vote of which the European Union already”
knew “the outcome … The protocol” is destabilising “Northern Ireland’s political landscape” and fuelling “division”. He said:
“Never has there been a more clear example of a zombie Assembly than today”.
Surely that gives a warning to Members of this House who want to close their mind, who think we should just keep it all going, that all is well, and that nothing needs to be changed.
This is in spite of the fact that businesses have been dealing with new checks and their related bureaucracy since 2021, when the original version of the protocol began to be implemented. Smaller firms with few resources face unpredictable challenges with the Irish Sea border, with sea border issues consuming a huge amount of time. This time should be profitably used in helping customers, not doing paperwork. Some have said:
“Small businesses are being crucified by the sea border”.
Under the changes made to EU legislation in February, the definition of “qualifying status”—that is, those goods moving from NI to GB—was amended, to clarify that agri-food goods from the Republic or elsewhere that do not have the necessary connection with a business in Northern Ireland will have to undertake SPS controls when moving from Northern Ireland to Great Britain: not when moving from the Irish Republic to Northern Ireland but when moving from Northern Ireland to Great Britain.
The previous Government already introduced these import controls on a transitional basis for non-qualifying goods movements between the Republic of Ireland and GB. These regulations would introduce a requirement to pre-notify non-qualifying goods moving between NI and GB and provide the necessary certification. Although we fundamentally agree that goods produced in Northern Ireland that move to GB should be differentiated from Irish produce that moves between Northern Ireland and GB to avoid customs and SPS controls, the reality is that these regulations are attempting to provide an answer to a question that should never have been posed in the first place. The United Kingdom Government should never have conceded that there was a need to shift SPS controls away from the recognised international border between Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic to the Irish Sea. That was always going to create economic and constitutional harm that cannot be easily addressed.
These regulations underpin a system of SPS import controls that is convoluted and likely to be extremely hard to enforce without also stymying the transportation of Northern Ireland produce to the rest of the United Kingdom internal market. It would be a constitutional affront and economically disadvantageous if the only way to guarantee unfettered access for local producers is to cast a blind eye to trade flows originating outside Northern Ireland, and with no link to Northern Ireland, looking to enter GB by the back door.
There is also an irony in the fact that the draft regulations make provision for any controls on non-qualifying goods to be carried out away from a border control post—including, as my noble friend said, in warehouses or at the point of destination—as stipulated in Article 44(3) of the Official Controls Regulation. If it is acceptable to do this for goods entering GB from NI, why could the same flexibility not have been applied for trade between Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic? The old proverb says that where there is a will, there is a way—but the truth is that the EU wanted to punish the UK for having the audacity to leave the EU. Sadly, Northern Ireland was to be the sacrificial lamb.
Windsor Framework (Non-Commercial Movement of Pet Animals) Regulations 2024
Lord McCrea of Magherafelt and Cookstown Excerpts(1 month, 3 weeks ago)
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Lord McCrea of Magherafelt and Cookstown (DUP)
My Lords, I rise to support the regret amendment, moved so ably by the noble Baroness, Lady Hoey, and supported by my noble friend Lord Dodds.
The protocol and the Windsor Framework were built on a false and rotten foundation. The Windsor Framework was sold as a great step forward from the original protocol through which Northern Ireland would enter into the promised land flowing with milk and honey and foreign investors would be so excited by Northern Ireland’s favoured position in the United Kingdom, having access to the single market of the European Union, that they would be camping out and patiently waiting in line to invest in the Province.
Of course, having access to the European single market, we would have to subject ourselves to EU laws over which the elected Members here at Westminster or in the Assembly would have no influence. The concept that 300 areas of EU law should be imposed on Northern Ireland is highly offensive. It recklessly violates our constitutional position in the United Kingdom and dismisses the fundamentals of this heralded Belfast agreement, which demanded that any constitutional issue would have to be decided by a cross-community vote—in other words, by a majority of unionists and nationalists.
The purpose of this instrument is to provide a statutory basis for the Northern Ireland pet travel scheme, which is agreed under that Windsor Framework. According to Defra, the scheme will enable the “smooth and straightforward movement” of pets—pet dogs, including assistant dogs, cats and ferrets—from Great Britain to Northern Ireland, while ensuring that any pet movements from GB into Ireland or any other member state remain subject to the relevant EU law requirement. It has been acknowledged by the department that this is but another example of where a wider consultation would have been desirable. In other words, it did not take place in that wider context.
However, to my mind, deeper consultation would be meaningless whenever we have a Government that have closed their mind as regards the implications of the Windsor Framework. When Europe makes its demands, our Government usually cave in. The United Kingdom Government have got Northern Ireland so entangled with Europe under the protocol and the Windsor Framework that the only way to grant equal constitutional rights to the people of Northern Ireland with the rest of the United Kingdom is, in my opinion, to scrap the protocol and the Windsor Framework.
I listened carefully to what the noble Lord, Lord Empey, said about taking the way forward and getting the alternative. But there is a big problem with an alternative because the noble Baroness, Lady Ritchie, who has spoken, and the noble Baroness who is speaking for the Lib Dems have in fact said that the protocol had to be rigorously implemented. In actual fact the noble Baroness, Lady Ritchie, said again tonight that she wants the Windsor Framework to be rigorously implemented. Getting an alternative, when there are those who see a need not for change but rather for a rigorous implementation of what is there at present, which is totally unacceptable to many within Northern Ireland as British citizens, is going to be very difficult.
Under these regulations, pets can travel from Northern Ireland to GB and return from GB without needing any pet travel documents and will not be subject to any checks or processes. However, the same does not apply to pets travelling from GB to Northern Ireland. This is another part of the United Kingdom. GB pet owners will need to show that they have a valid pet passport document which applies to the pet that they are travelling with. They will need a valid GB address to obtain a pet travel document and that will be checked during the course of applying for it. Why has this happened? It is simply because the EU has legislated for it to happen within the United Kingdom—a foreign authority legislating what happens between two parts of the same United Kingdom. We have been told constantly that we have left that authority. In fact, listening to the Minister earlier on today we were told that Brexit will not be changed, so therefore we have left.
If persons from GB come to Northern Ireland with their dog and then wish to visit a friend over the border in the Irish Republic, they must subject themselves to a full SPS border check for their pet. Under these regulations, should the EU feel that they are not being implemented to the satisfaction of EU-authorised personnel, their operation can be suspended, or whatever other steps the EU feels appropriate will be taken.
If any animal—pet dogs, including assistance dogs, cats or ferrets—does not meet EU standards regarding documentation or identity checks, the animal can be taken into SPS custody. What impact assessment has been done on the regulations, or is this another example of simply being subservient to EU demands? What detailed consultations were held with guide dog owners? In the other place, the Minister explained the reason for her acceptance of this imposition by Europe and divergence within the United Kingdom:
“We believe in keeping our word and in fulfilling our obligations”.—[Official Report, Commons, Delegated Legislation Committee, 6/11/24; col. 7.]
I ask the Minister: what does she feel about her Government’s obligations to the people of Northern Ireland and respecting the integrity of the United Kingdom? Surely, it is time to take a stand and to reject this Windsor Framework imposition. I, for one, am happy to vote—
Lord Dodds of Duncairn (DUP)
Before the noble Lord sits down, he referred to the necessity and requirement for cross-community support, and he is absolutely right to highlight that important part of the arrangements in Northern Ireland. Therefore, would he accept that when the noble Lord, Lord Empey, read out various paragraphs of the proposal from Boris Johnson to the European Union at that time, he seemed to overlook and omit a key paragraph of part of that? He has done this on a number of occasions. It is that those proposals could happen only with the full consent of unionists and nationalists, not just in the Northern Ireland Assembly but in the Executive—so both nationalists and unionists would have an absolute lock on whether it happened or not. That is something that, of course, now unionists in Northern Ireland would take your right arm off for.
Lord McCrea of Magherafelt and Cookstown (DUP)
I thank the noble Lord for his intervention and I wholeheartedly agree with him. It is now on the record, and I think it would have been good to read that part into the record as well.
The sad reality is that the goalposts have been moved recently. Because, in the vote taken in the Northern Ireland Assembly, for the first time—50 years—they have now declared there is no need for a cross-community vote. Members in this House have campaigned that this was so essential. The Belfast agreement was quoted by the noble Baroness, Lady Ritchie, tonight. The Belfast agreement.
Lord McCrea of Magherafelt and Cookstown (DUP)
It is sacrosanct; it cannot be changed. Yet the reality is that, for this vote, it is being put into the bin and now it must be a simple majority vote. That is despicable, that is disgraceful and those who support it ought to be ashamed.
Baroness Foster of Aghadrumsee (Non-Afl)
My Lords, I was not going to speak, but I feel I should, given some of the commentary around the House—some of it, quite frankly, was not correct. I am very glad that my noble friend Lord Dodds corrected some of the commentary from the noble Lord, Lord Empey, in relation to 2019. Of course, we know that the reasons we got to 2019 were laid in 2017, in relation to the Prime Minister’s negotiations and how she set the agenda at that time.
One area I will raise again, like other noble Lords and noble Baronesses, is openness and transparency. Again, the Secondary Legislation Scrutiny Committee concluded that wider consultation would have been desirable. I take the point that was made about the level of scrutiny in the other place being fleeting at best. When I read through Hansard for the other place, I was, frankly, shocked at the level of scrutiny that had taken place.