EU’s ambassador to UK calls for more trust in post-Brexit relationship March 11, 2021 The EU’s ambassador to Britain has today said there needs to be more trust in the UK-EU post-Brexit relationship as rows over vaccines and Northern Ireland rage on. Ambassador João Vale de Almeida told journalists today that “trust is the most important commodity in international relationships” and that “when levels of trust go down you [...]
Brexit: UK food manufacturers to face millions of pounds of new red tape costs March 11, 2021 British food exporters are set to be hit with millions of pounds of new costs due to new EU post-Brexit bureaucracy from next month. From 21 April, Brussels will make some UK food manufacturers fill out new health assessment forms when exporting to the EU that will increase paperwork by around one-third. The new red [...]
EU nations agree to launch legal action against UK in Northern Ireland Brexit row March 10, 2021 EU countries have backed a proposal to launch legal action against the UK for unilaterally deciding to delay introducing post-Brexit customs checks in Northern Ireland in what will be an escalation of an ongoing row. European Commission vice president, and the EU’s Brexit chief, Maros Sefcovic presented the plans to the 27 EU ambassadors in [...]
The Week Ahead: ITV, Rolls Royce, Morrison, ECB and UK GDP data March 8, 2021 It’s Monday morning. City A.M. looks ahead at what this week has in store. China Trade for February This morning – The Chinese economy finished 2020 on a strong note, its surplus hitting a record high in December. Exports rose by 18.1 per cent, slightly down from November’s 21.1 per cent but still better than expected, [...]
Ministers in talks over post-Brexit global services deal March 8, 2021 The government is said to be in talks to create a global trade agreement in services in an effort to boost the UK economy after Brexit. Senior ministers and City lobby groups have held discussions over a plan that would allow countries including Britain to export services such as banking, insurance and legal advice to [...]
Brexit fuels sharper fall in takeovers by UK investors in continental Europe than worldwide average March 8, 2021 The coronavirus pandemic and Brexit hampered deal activity between the UK and continental Europe in 2020, with the number of European businesses bought by UK acquirers falling by nearly a third. The number of takeovers by UK acquirers of continental European businesses fell 30% from 488 in 2019 to 342 in 2020, new research has [...]
Liz Truss insists UK has not breached Northern Ireland protocol March 5, 2021 Trade minister Liz Truss has insisted Britain has not breached the Northern Ireland protocol in the Brexit trade deal, something it has been accused of doing by the European Union which has promised to take legal action. “These are temporary easements and it’s perfectly common practice whilst deals are being implemented to have temporary easements [...]
UK-Kenya trade deal in jeopardy as mood in Nairobi turns outright hostile March 5, 2021 The future of the recently signed trade agreement between the UK and Kenya seems increasingly uncertain as MPs and a group of farmers in Nairobi are threatening to shoot down the pact. Yesterday, multiple Kenyan lawmakers came out against the trade deal, saying the agreement is ‘illegal’ under Kenyan law, while a collective of farmers [...]
EU to launch legal action against UK ‘very soon’ over Brexit grace period extension March 4, 2021 The EU will launch legal action against the UK “very soon” over Britain’s extension of a grace period for checks on goods heading to Northern Ireland, the vice president of the European Commission has said. Maros Sefcovic told the Financial Times the decisions announced by the UK government yesterday had been a “very negative surprise”. Ministers [...]
Brexit: EU ‘simply can’t trust’ Britain as tensions rise over Northern Irish protocol March 4, 2021 The EU will see Britain as an untrustworthy partner after its decision to alter the Northern Irish Brexit arrangement, Ireland’s foreign minister said this morning. Simon Coveney claimed it was not the first time the EU have seen warning signs in Britain’s dealings, after the move sparked accusations of a breach of trust. The comments [...]