Today’s the day to end the Protocol and to cut UK families' energy bills
Liz Truss to meet Šefčovič again – will it be deal or no deal?
Montage © Facts4EU.Org 2022
As rumours grow that Liz Truss is about to capitulate we say “No Deal” – and here’s why
Brexit reforms in great Britain are now being abandoned because of the Protocol in Northern Ireland. “Take back Control” is now becoming a hollow promise.
Revelations in the last week that two important reforms promised by the Conservatives have now been abandoned – due entirely to the Northern Ireland Protocol – have served to illustrate how invasive and distorting are the effects of having a confected internal border in the middle of the Irish Sea.
Late last year all eyes were on the Government in expectation of it abolishing the 5% VAT rate on energy bills – previously promised by Boris Johnson as a good reason to vote ‘Leave’ during the 2016 referendum.
"As long as we are in the EU, we are not allowed to cut this tax.
"When we Vote Leave, we will be able to scrap this unfair and damaging tax."
- Boris Johnson, June 2016
With the cost of energy going through the roof it was expected that the VAT cut would be a way of reducing household bills – but the Chancellor Rishi Sunak refused.
Rumours abound that this is all political – caused by the EU’s Protocol
Reports coming out of the Treasury and from well-informed Conservative MPs now put it beyond question that the real reason is not an economic one but the embarrassment that would be caused by the Northern Ireland Protocol not allowing the VAT cut to be delivered in Northern Ireland. The outrage that would be caused in Northern Ireland would have made the Protocol even more unpopular than it is and show the failure of the Government’s agreement made at the end of 2019.
Then at the weekend it was announced that the proposal by Michael Gove to ban foie gras in the UK is also not now going ahead – and the reason again is it would mean a different law on mainland Great Britain to that in Northern Ireland, as the EU Single Market and Customs Union allows foie gras to be exported from France.
The BBC reported the Northern Ireland Secretary had “raised concerns” the ban could not go ahead in Northern Ireland, drawing attention to the differences in law that the Protocol can make.
And… if it can happen in the EU does it have to happen in the United Kingdom now that we have taken back control?
Ian Duncan Smith MP:
“This very Tory-friendly, tax-cutting idea was effectively ruled out because it could not take effect in Northern Ireland, where VAT rates on domestic fuel bills must still match EU levels.
“It is probably fair to say that if it wasn’t for the pernicious effects of the Protocol, every family in Britain could be £100 a year better off from scrapping VAT on fuel bills.”
- Rt Hon Sir Iain Duncan Smith MP, Mail on Sunday, February 20, 2020
Brexit Facts4EU.Org Summary
£100 saving on Energy Bills abandoned because of Protocol
- It is well known that the Cabinet is divided but the Chancellor has stood his ground refusing to cut VAT on energy bills that could have saved the average household £100 a year. Reports and briefings from a civil servant have confirmed the real reason is the Protocol would stop the VAT cut in Northern Ireland.
- The Treasury had decided to start preparing legislation to zero-rate VAT on energy bills late last year but by early January the decision was reversed. It was a political decision, not an economic one, because the alternative measure (cutting some council tax bills) is at least as costly.
- According to Annex 2 of the Protocol the supply of goods in Northern Ireland remains subject to EU VAT law. Goods includes the supply of gas and electricity and these are thus subject to VAT.
- It has also been reported – by the BBC, no less – that the intended ban on the importation of foie gras from France has been abandoned due to the Protocol.
- Which laws will not be repealed next? It could be anything to do with foods, food processing, food labelling or involving animals or VAT.
Observations
The Protocol is not just about Northern Ireland - it affects families across the UK
There is a serious misconception around the Northern Ireland Protocol that needs to be put right and it is this: the Protocol is not just about trade from Great Britain to Northern Ireland. It is much, much more than that.
Our Fact4EU reports have pointed out previously how there are other issues, such as the unwelcome oversight of the ECJ, the democratic deficit on new laws or maintaining existing ones to do with the Single Market and Customs Union which Northern Ireland remains in; all the restrictions on pets (because they are treated the same as livestock); and the breach of both the 1800 Acts of Union and the Belfast Agreement.
But there is more. We can now see that the UK Government is unwilling to take action that it is quite legitimately able to do because it would provide real examples to the British public on either side of the Irish sea that the countries are diverging. The result is therefore that certain laws where previously commitments have been given are not being now being repealed or changes made.
Not only does the EU tax imposed In Northern Ireland under the Protocol maintain the cost of living crisis in Northern Ireland, it also impacts directly on all households on the mainland – some 65 million people.
It is nothing short of a disgrace for Northern Ireland and Great Britain, and it is enough reason for Liz Truss to tell the Prime Minister we must invoke Article 16 now.
Will we see a political fudge today?
Unfortunately the briefings coming out of Dublin are that a deal has all but been agreed and it is just a matter of finding the right formula of words – with no end to the ECJ, no resolution of the democratic deficit concerning the application of EU laws, while the conflict with existing treaties remains.
We hope we are wrong but we fear the worst – which means our campaigning on the Protocol will carry on.
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[ Sources: Mail on Sunday (Sir Iain Duncan Smith) | Vote Leave | BBC online ] Politicians and journalists can contact us for details, as ever.
Brexit Facts4EU.Org, Monday, 21 February, 2022
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