Good Morning,
Previously denied by Johnson, the UK Government did indeed confirmed, in a letter to the Executive Office in Stormont, this week that there will be checks on goods travelling between Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Meanwhile in a win for citizens rights, the UK Home Office has accepted that people born in Northern Ireland are EU citizens and Emma De Souza can apply for her husband to stay in the UK. We have more #BrexitAnswers for you and some recommended reading for your Friday.
Enjoy,
Jacob
In Politics
Border Checks Will Happen
There will be checks on goods traveling between Britain and Northern Ireland
Boris Johnson has previously denied this
Confirmation comes via a letter to the Executive Office in Stormont and a select committee in Belfast
There will be a border for goods between Britain and Northern Ireland despite previous promises of frictionless trade by the Prime Minister. The Guardian reports this week that in a letter to Stormont the UK Government confirmed there would be border control posts in ports in Belfast, Warrenpoint and Larne. This was confirmed by a junior minister of the Stormont Executive Office in a select committee session in Belfast.
This border down the Irish Sea is a direct result of the Withdrawal Agreement agreed between Boris Johnson and the European Union via a meeting with Leo Varadkar, the Taoiseach, in October 2019. This was a change from the previous Withdrawal Agreement agreed by Theresa May. The Institute for Government has an explainer on the differences and implications of the changes negotiated by Johnson.
Johnson’s version, which is now passed in law, places Northern Ireland in the customs territory of the EU while allowing GB to maintain a customs territory independent of the EU. This creates a customs border down the Irish Sea. It also means that there is a chance for goods to travel from one customs territory, GB, to another, EU, via NI and across the border on the island of Ireland. Therefore goods that cross between GB and NI will be subject to checks as they could travel to the EU via the land border of Ireland.
One crucial thing to take into consideration now is that there will have to be infrastructure in place for the checks to be carried out. As we have written previously there is already a long list of things for the UK Government to do before January 1st 2021. Companies who ship between GB and NI will need to be prepared and currently will have to do this preparation in the midst of a global health crisis. There is a lot of Brexit uncertainty ahead and this admission via the select committee in Belfast is a concerning approach to governing that does not allow for proper preparation, engagement and scrutiny.
In Policy
Emma De Souza Achieves Policy Change From UK Home Office
Home Office now recognise that people born in Northern Ireland are EU citizens
Allows 3rd country spouses of people born in Northern Ireland to apply for residency under EU Settlement Scheme
Many rights are still not protected by law in UK
Emma De Souza announced yesterday that the UK Government has accepted they need to make changes to Immigration Rules in order to recognise the unique citizenship rights of people born in Northern Ireland.
The key change here is that all Northern Ireland citizens, whether they are British, Irish or both will allow 3rd country spouses to apply to remain in the UK under the EU Settlement Scheme.
The De Souza case occurred when Emma De Souza, born in Northern Ireland, applied for a residence card for her US born husband. She applied as an Irish citizen. People born in Northern Ireland are entitled to have British, Irish or dual citizenship as part of the Good Friday Agreement. The UK Home Office however stated that De Souza could not do this as they saw all people born in Northern Ireland as British, despite their own citizenship identifications. They then forced De Souza to choose to either reapply as British, or give up her British citizenship and apply as Irish. This led to considerable implications for the rights of all people born in Northern Ireland.
As reported by the Guardian the change by the UK Government this week means that all British and Irish citizens born in Northern Ireland will be treated as EU citizens and therefore they can access the EU Settlement Scheme to apply to allow residency for their 3rd country partners, such as De Souza’s husband.
This means that the rights in the Good Friday Agreement are being recognised by the Home Office in a way they weren’t previously. There do however remain many issues with citizens rights’ in Northern Ireland. As De Souza points out about this change “it has not given legal effect to the Good Friday Agreement right to be Irish. Ireland updated its immigration laws to bring them into line in 1998 but the British did not”. Membership of the EU meant that the UK did not have to update its laws to take account of the historic agreement. For instance, the Common Travel Area is merely held up by a Memorandum of Understanding rather than actual legislation.
The change by the Home Office is good news for citizens rights but there still remain many questions about the future of them. There needs to be primary legislation to protect agreements such as the Common Travel Area and maintain people’s rights post Brexit.
In Events
Brexit Answers
EU Settlement Scheme - How can organisations support EU citizens?
Join the AIRE Centre, the New Europeans, and JCWI on Wednesday 27th May at 10:00am to learn more about the EU Settlement Scheme and EU citizen’s rights. Find more information and free tickets here.
Future Relationship, Transition Period, and Trade
Join the Trade Justice Movement and the Institute for Public Policy Research on Thursday 28th May at 10.00am to discover what is next for trade. Find more information and free tickets here.
Legal Challenges Arising From Brexit
Join the Public Law Project on Tuesday 2nd June at 10.00am to discover more about the legal changes that are arising from Brexit. Find more information and free tickets here
Recommended Reading
Brexit Answers: Disability Rights and Brexit blog on our website
COVID-19 and EU Citizens: advice and resources available on our website.
House of Commons Library looks at the impact of COVID-19 on devolution in England here.
House of Lords EU Committee Report: Beyond Brexit - How to Win Friends and Influence People available here