Displaying items by tag: Brexit

Britain's chief Brexit negotiator Lord Frost told Boris Johnson to expect a Brussels trade deal around 24 November. However, talks could still collapse over fishing and red tape, with both sides urging the other to ‘get real’. A diplomatic source said, ‘You can expect some strong words from leaders that the EU will be operating in a no-deal scenario within days and the Commission has been tasked to activate contingency planning’. (see) There is a sense of desperation to get a deal sorted. Robin Walker, junior minister for Northern Ireland, told Parliament, ‘There remain important outstanding issues to be resolved’ The justice minister has urged that a Brexit deal be agreed, warning of a potential ‘organised crime bonanza’. There are huge uncertainties for justice agencies with just weeks to go until the end of the transition period. It is not just the future security partnership that affects policing and justice in Northern Ireland, it is also the economic decisions that are made.

The ‘Haulier Handbook’ (to prevent Brexit border meltdown) is a guide to the mountain of new red tape required to transport goods across borders. It was promised in early September but will now not be fully available until 7 December, three weeks before it is needed. Logistics UK, representing freight groups, warned that time is running out to prevent ‘lorry queues at Dover and empty shelves in Northern Ireland’ when the transition period ends in 50 days’ time. ‘With the economy still reeling from handling the impact of Covid-19, the last thing UK plc needs is another major shock of our own making,’ said the Logistics director of policy. Construction of border inspection posts for checks on animal products crossing the Irish Sea has not yet started, and will take up to six months to complete.

Negotiations for a post-Brexit trade deal between the UK and EU are expected to continue next week as the deadline draws nearer. The two sides resumed talks in London this week, with a UK government source saying they were in the ‘final stage’. But big gaps still remain, and the UK described the EU’s position on fishing access as ‘wholly unrealistic’. Boris Johnson is prepared to move forward without a deal. If nothing is agreed, the UK will trade with the bloc on World Trade Organisation rules - leading to tariffs on many imports and exports, which could push up costs for businesses and consumers. Both sides say they want to avoid this outcome, but the EU will not do a deal ‘at any price’. Mr Johnson said the UK will prosper either way.

This last fortnight of Brexit negotiations has been a bit ‘stop-start’, but they now appear to be progressing a little more positively with face to face talks.  Meetings have been held in London, but are now moving back to Brussels for what many hope will be a constructive and productive closing phase which is expected to last about two weeks.

The president of the European Council has meanwhile insisted that negotiations are at their most difficult stage. Charles Michel, who chairs summits of EU leaders in Brussels, said: "Will we get a deal? I don't know – it will depend on what will be on the table."

Michel said the issue of fishing was proving a major sticking point between the two parties. British Cabinet Minister, Michael Gove told the Welsh Brexit minister that Britain could ‘no longer be bound by the Common Fisheries Policy’ and won’t back down on its demands.

Spain and Gibraltar want a last-minute deal to avoid having a hard border after Brexit. However, a Spanish diplomatic source said they have stumbled on ‘a lack of political will’ in London.

Ireland’s foreign minister claimed that a trade deal is now ‘likely’ in the next two weeks, while warning ‘major trade disruption would be the ‘new reality’ even if a UK-EU deal is struck.

Bloomberg is predicting, ‘Brexit negotiators have made good progress in London this week, raising hopes they could ‘inch’ towards a deal by early November, Bloomberg quoted people ‘familiar with the discussions’ claiming the two sides have begun work on the text of an agreement covering level playing field issues, and are close to finalising a joint document covering state aid mechanism.

Please pray for an end to the ‘tactical games’ on final agreements and for the outcome to produce God’s purposes for the nations. (Romans 13:1b)

More at: https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/brexit-news-live-today-eu-deal-boris-johnson-update-latest-b1391746.html

A Prayer for Brexit:

We come into agreement with Your word in Matthew 17: 20 “you can say to this mountain, ‘move from here to there,’ and it will move. Nothing will be impossible to you”.

We declare God desires this nation will display His Kingdom and His Kingship, we decree Righteousness, Justice, Mercy and Truth – moral and spiritual – will be the foundations upon which we will build. God is the Master Planner of heaven and earth, His plans are for good and not evil, greater than every plan of man or of the enemy.

We stand as the Ecclesia in this land, and we speak convergence and completion into all Brexit negotiations, that the next season for this nation will be birthed according to every blueprint held in Heaven, in Jesus Name.

As negotiations move to Brussels for their final phase, we come into agreement with His word in Romans 4:17: He is “The God who gives life to the dead and calls into being that which does not exist.”

Over all matters concerning Brexit under discussion, we call forth the strategies and plans of heaven, that will bless both the UK and EU, and we decree His answers to the outstanding areas of free trade, fisheries, security and all other matters. We declare the ground will be prepared for a beneficial relationship between the EU and UK that will prosper everyone in the days to come.

Now Lord, we call business, the haulage industry and exporting companies into a place of preparedness for the exit from EU that movement of goods, services and people will not be hindered.

Father, over all discussions, negotiations and decisions we Hallow your name, praying that across the Continent of Europe Your kingdom will come and Your will be done - across each nation as it is in Heaven.

In the name of Your Son Christ Jesus our Lord, Amen.

With thanks to:
Linda Digby / Prayer-Alert.net | Suzanne Ferrett / Passion for the Nation | Ian Cole / IPC Senior Advisor

Michael Gove told the Welsh Brexit minister that Britain could ‘no longer be bound by the Common Fisheries Policy’ and won’t back down on its demands. Spain and Gibraltar want a last-minute deal to avoid having a hard border after Brexit. However a Spanish diplomatic source said they have stumbled on ‘a lack of political will’ in London. Ireland’s foreign minister claimed that a trade deal is now ‘likely’ in the next two weeks, while warning ‘major trade disruption would be the ‘new reality’ even if a UK-EU deal is struck. Bloomberg (an international news agency) thinks that the Brexit negotiators have made good progress in London this week, raising hopes they could ‘inch’ towards a deal by early November. People ‘familiar with the discussions’ claim that the two sides have begun work on the text of an agreement covering level playing field issues, and are close to finalising a joint document covering state aid mechanism.

Talks between UK and EU Brexit negotiators entered an ‘intensified phase’ on 22 October after Brussels said both sides would be required to compromise on trade issues. Michel Barnier offered an olive branch to Lord Frost as the deadline for a deal looms. Number 10 acknowledged that ‘significant gaps’ remain between the two sides, and it was ‘entirely possible that negotiations will not succeed’. Meanwhile, according to the Home Office, EU criminals could be barred from entering the UK when freedom of movement ends next year. However questions remain as to how the criminal history of travellers will be checked if the UK loses access to EU crime databases at the end of the Brexit transition period, as no agreements have yet been reached.

The prime minister is hoping for some progress at the current EU Council summit in Brussels before revealing whether he wants the trade deal talks to continue. The two-day summit is the EU’s first Brexit meeting since the start of the coronavirus pandemic. The talks began on 15 October, the day that the PM previously set as his final cut-off point for an agreement. However, on the previous da he indicated he would ‘reflect’ on the outcome of the summit before making a decision. Stark differences still remain between the two sides on fishing, and the EU wants a deal, but not at ‘any price’. France is adamant it should maintain long-term access to British waters as part of any trade deal; ‘Britain's demands for annual negotiations over fishing quotas are unacceptable’. Pray for God to give Downing Street wisdom and strength over politically sensitive issues.

Fish are one of the main issues at the centre of Brexit negotiations. Three times a week, at 6 am, vessels return to Ostend loaded with fish for the auction. Three-quarters of the fish sold here were caught in British waters, which contain more fish than those of the North Sea. Many Belgian fishermen hope that after Brexit they’ll keep on having a good catch. Bruno Decordiar spends 60% of his time fishing solely in British waters. He’s worried that Brexit could harm his activity. ‘We are often at English ports and when we speak with British fishermen they tell us that we take all their fish,’ he said. ‘If they close the waters I'm sure we'll lose half of our income.’ Most fish landed by British fishermen are sold to the EU. A no-deal Brexit ‘fish fight’ increases competition between Europeans. If there is no fishing agreement, there will be no global trade agreement.

The Presbyterian Church in Ireland, the Church of Ireland, the Methodist Church in Ireland, the Irish Council of Churches, and the Roman Catholic Church have insisted it is in everyone’s interests to achieve the clarity and security a Brexit agreement will provide. They have also reaffirmed their commitment to protect the 1998 Good Friday Agreement - which established a new era of non-violence in Northern Ireland following 30 years of brutal sectarian conflict. The group stated, ‘We do not underestimate the challenges faced by the negotiating parties in terms of the complexity and the significance of what is at stake. As church leaders on the island of Ireland, we have welcomed the important commitment of both parties in the negotiations to the protection of the Good Friday/Belfast Agreement in all its parts. We hope that the agreement will serve as a source of inspiration and a foundation to build upon, as we continue to work through the Brexit process.’

The ex-supreme court president, Lord Neuberger, has warned that Boris Johnson’s law-breaking Internal Market Bill is taking the UK down a ‘very slippery slope’ towards dictatorship. In a virtual meeting with Britain’s top lawyers, he described it as ‘quite extraordinary’. He said the bill - which the Government admits will break key parts of the existing Brexit withdrawal agreement - sought to do away with one of the most important aspects of any democratic society. ‘This country has a remarkable, unbroken history of 350 years of observing the rule of law, and has an enviable reputation for that.’ He added, ‘Once you deprive individuals of the right to go to court, to challenge the government, you are in a dictatorship, you are in a tyranny.’ However, for the time being, Brexit trade deal negotiations have moved on and to avoid a damaging no-deal scenario, EU officials could negotiate until mid-November