Under the government's plans, 5,000 heavy goods vehicle (HGV) drivers would be able to come to Britain under temporary visas, while another 5,500 visas would be issued to poultry workers "to avoid any potential further pressures on the food industry".
These short-term visas, which the government had previously rejected introducing despite calls from retail and logistics companies, will expire on Dec. 24.
Who ever will want to come for a seasonal job to be kicked to the curb at Christmas
Those 5K visas for lorry drivers is no match for the 100K of open positions. Also too delivery of dangerous goods, like petrol, reqiures special permits, so no relief for those motorists queing up at the gas stations.
ETA. which EU drivers are actually candidates? Those that are already used to drive on the "wrong side" aka left vs. continental right. I bet many of that limited category has no longer the wish to make a stint in the UK. I bet after 9 months most will have found a permanent job.
I wonder how many poultry workers they will pick up under this scheme. I expect that some potential workers may be without job and may take a couple of months to earn just a little income. Though at this time it's early October, the holiday season in the European meat processing plants has already started. There may be little free hands to make the travel to the UK. For the employers it will be a costly task to locate the candidaate workers, walk them thru the paperwork and let them show up for the visa interview at the embassies, ready with presigned contracts and health insurance confirmed, and then have a plane ticket booked and flown to the UK. At arrival still unconfirmed if they need to go into quarantine of can skip that procedure.
Brexit cancels bonfire night: Import rules reduce UK firework supply by 70 per cent
Michiel Willems
There won’t be enough fireworks for the usual Bonfire Night celebrations, and as the date approaches, low supply will increase prices for consumers,
The UK is receiving just 30 per cent of the fireworks stock that suppliers usually have for the year, City A.M. has been told today.
In fact, there won’t be enough fireworks for the usual Bonfire Night celebrations, and as the date approaches, low supply will increase prices for consumers, according to Doncaster-based supplier Fireworks Kingdom.
The firm said this morning that three reasons related to Brexit cause these shortages in the UK.
ps. the European CE security label on fireworks must be replaced by the Brits very own UKCA mark in 2023. Importers of fireworks are reluctant to by stuff that may not sell and be illegal to sell next year. Will the Chinese pyrotechnic producers go thru the procedures for a small UK market?
Also too transport companies need to now pay a deposit per container (£5000) in case transit thru EU ports from China have permits denied. No direct shipping to UK available...
I just read several news articles about Brexit, trying to figure out what's going to happen. I mean, other than chaos and shortages. Is there a movement to demand returning to the EU? Negotiate a new agreement? Is the tide turning against Johnson?
What percent of the UK population understands the cost and damage because of the loss of foreign workers? Not just drivers and ag workers. I've read that the medical system is being harmed by the personnel shortage. From medical offices to hospitals to long term care.
IIRC, we discussed the referendum on the old forum (may it rest in peace...). The majority thought it was stupid and harmful. Stunned by the win, members had discussions about whether the vote required exiting or was it more like poll.
I'm probably not writing this correctly. Obviously, Brexit is harming the UK in numerous areas - as predicted. What is the plan to limit the harm? (Other than Johnson claiming it's just a temporary hiccup.)
You can't wait until life isn't hard anymore before you decide to be happy.
Lani wrote: ↑Sun Sep 26, 2021 6:56 pm
I just read several news articles about Brexit, trying to figure out what's going to happen. I mean, other than chaos and shortages. Is there a movement to demand returning to the EU? Negotiate a new agreement? Is the tide turning against Johnson?
To start with the last, there are indications in opinions that suggest that Boris Johsons end of reign may be nearing, the mismanagement getting more and more obvious. Negotiate a new agreement with the EU - will not happen, the EU will at least request that the current deal be fully implemented. Apart of that I understand that the EU will not re-negotiate as long as this current government has the lead - not trustworthy. As for returning to the EU, will not happen in my life time. There is a long waiting list of candidates that will want to be considered before a fresh application by the UK will be accepted. Then there will be 30+ nations in the EU that need to vote in favour of a renewed membeship. Any future membership will come at a huge cost, the UK will have to redo everything they invented under their newly found "Sovereignity" to come in line with the then current EU laws and regulations. What may be in sight if a future government believes in a lesser level of "Sovereignity" is an association with the Free Market, similar to the agreement that Switzerland and a few other European countries have with the EU (means to accept a large section of the EU rules without participating in their creation).
UK risks French ire with limits on fishing in coastal waters
Decision to allow only a handful of small boats’ applications further strains relations between Paris and London
Peter Foster in Brighton, Victor Mallet in Paris and Sam Fleming in Brussels .
The UK risked further souring relations with Paris on Tuesday after announcing a decision to allow only a handful of smaller French boats to fish in UK coastal waters under the terms of the Brexit withdrawal agreement.
As part of the EU-UK divorce deal it was agreed that EU boats would be allowed to fish in the UK’s sensitive 6- to 12-nautical mile coastal zone if they could demonstrate a proven record of fishing in those areas.
After receiving 87 requests from the French government this year, the UK government announced that only 12 smaller boats under 12 metres in length would be allowed to fish in mainly English and Welsh coastal waters.
Officials said the decision had been made after in-depth investigation into data provided by smaller fishing vessels, including location data and fish landing records.
The deal required boats to be able to prove that they had fished in the 6nm-12nm zone at least once a year in four of the five years between 2012 and 2016.
The decision to grant only one in seven of the French requests for access for small boats to UK coastal waters risks putting further strain on relations between London and Paris, just weeks after the row over the Aukus submarine deal.
France urges EU to increase pressure on UK over fishing rights Paris says fishermen based in Normandy face unreasonable curbs on working in English Channel
Sam Fleming in Brussels, Peter Foster in Brighton and Victor Mallet in Paris
SEPTEMBER 17 2021
France has urged Brussels to step up pressure on the UK over fishing rights as it warned of mounting frustration among its fishermen and the risk of renewed unrest following a blockade of Jersey this year.
Jean Castex, the French prime minister, called on European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen to consider using other economic levers to push the UK into a fisheries compromise, in a letter sent this month and seen by the Financial Times.
The dispute between the UK and France concerns access to waters in the English Channel for fishermen based on the Normandy coast, who say they have worked in the area for years and now face unreasonable restrictions.
The two sides have failed to settle the methodology under which French ships can establish their rights to licences to continue using the waters, ahead of a September 30 deadline.
I just found these regularly updated lists of upsides and downsides to Brexit.
Currently, the downsides list has 276 items. The upsides, 17.
One of the upsides:
14. EU popular support: Polling shows that support for EU membership is above 80 percent in most member states following Brexit. The Kantar survey asked how people would vote in an in-out referendum and found that Luxembourg (94 percent), Portugal (92 percent), Ireland (91 percent), and the Netherlands (91 percent) had the highest support for EU membership out of the 27 countries in the bloc.
I'd have to register to see the whole list of support for the EU, but I'd bet Hungary was pretty far down the list.
"Choose your leaders with wisdom and forethought. To be led by a coward is to be controlled by all that the coward fears… To be led by a liar is to ask to be told lies." -Octavia E. Butler
Those figures are from 2019 and seem to be the most recently published results across the EU. The surprising figure given for Hungary was 81% pro EU membership.
Uninformed wrote: ↑Tue Sep 28, 2021 8:40 pm
Those figures are from 2019 and seem to be the most recently published results across the EU. The surprising figure given for Hungary was 81% pro EU membership.
Maybe that shouldn't surprise me as I know there are a lot of people in Hungary who aren't happy with what Orban is doing. I'm on a Hungarian group on Facebook, which generally is not political, but a few times that something political comes up, before it is shut down, I've seen people who are very happy with Orban and the direction he's taking the country. I wonder what they would think of the huge "palace" he is secretly building.
"Choose your leaders with wisdom and forethought. To be led by a coward is to be controlled by all that the coward fears… To be led by a liar is to ask to be told lies." -Octavia E. Butler
Michel Barnier: Former EU negotiator on Brexit, immigration & the French presidency - BBC Newsnight
BBC News
28 Sept 2021
The EU’s former Brexit chief negotiator, Michel Barnier, joins Emily Maitlis in his first UK broadcast interview since the publication of his book 'My Secret Brexit Diary'.
The Brexit vote was five years ago and the Brexit deal was struck nearly two years ago.
And yet the tentacles of those decisions are being felt more vividly today than ever before. Whether its discussions over rising wages of lorry drivers, or the migrant worker shortages seen in so many of our sectors.
Newsnight talks to the man who negotiated that deal for the EU, Michel Barnier.
Emily Maitlis started by asking him if he felt the negotiations ended up where he expected.
France threatens retaliation against UK as fishing spat flares again
By Elizabeth Pineau
September 29, 2021 10:42 PM CEST Last Updated 20 hours ago
France says retaliation could target energy, trade, travel
UK says it has already issued nearly 2,000 fishing licences
France already angry with UK over Indo-Pacific security pact
PARIS, Sept 29 (Reuters) - France will decide within two weeks on possible retaliation measures after Britain and the Channel Island of Jersey refused dozens of French fishing boats a licence to operate in their territorial waters.
Paris accused London of playing politics with post-Brexit fishing rights and urged other European Union nations to take a similarly tough stand against what it called Britain's disregard towards the new trading relationship.
The flare-up over fisheries comes as Paris fumes over Britain's involvement in a new Indo-Pacific security pact with the United States and Australia that led to Canberra's decision to ditch an agreement to buy French submarines.
Brits, don’t drive into the EU without this new sticker
By Jonny Walfisz •
Updated: 30/09/2021 - 16:39
Brits driving to the EU will now need a new sticker to point out that they’re in a UK car.
The new rule change by the UK government came into force on 28 September. Drivers of UK cars must now have a clear sticker that says ‘UK’ on it.
The UK sticker replaces the old ‘GB’ sticker. The government advises “if you have a GB sticker, cover or remove it before driving outside the UK.”
You don’t need to worry about a UK sticker if you’re driving to Ireland, but the rule is applicable for the rest of the EU.
According to government advice, cars with any of the following will need a new sticker:
a GB identifier with the Union flag
a Euro symbol
a national flag of England, Scotland or Wales
numbers and letters only - no flag or identifier
Why the new UK sticker?
“Changing the national identifier from GB to UK symbolises our unity as a nation and is part of a wider move towards using the UK signifier across government,” a spokesperson for the Department of Transport (DfT) told Euronews Travel.
“GB number plates will still be valid within the EU as long as drivers display a UK sticker on the rear of their vehicle.”
“Stakeholders were informed of the intention to change the signifier ahead of notifying the UN.”
HGV driver shortages: Fury as Government asks paramedics to take up lorry driving to solve crisis A letter from the Department for Transport was sent to paramedics urging them to ‘consider’ a career as an HGV driver in light of the national shortage
(While the Scottish Ambulance Service has received help from the Army in recent weeks due to a shortage of ambulance drivers. - photo)
By Poppy Wood
October 1, 2021 3:34 pm(Updated 6:11 pm)
The Government has been accused of “robbing Peter to pay Paul” after it attempted to recruit paramedics to solve the nationwide HGV crisis.
The Department for Transport sent out a letter last week to around one million people with C1 driving licences, which allow them to drive vehicles weighing up to 7.5 tonnes.
Those contacted include ambulance workers, paramedics, road sweeper drivers, bus drivers and ex-Army personnel, among others.
The letter asked them to “consider” a career as a HGV driver in light of the national shortage, telling recipients: “As you are undoubtedly aware, this has been putting pressure on UK supply chains for some time.”
It added that the HGV sector offered “attractive pay rates,” as well as “flexible working, fixed hours, fixed days, full-time and part-time”.
The government proposes a Christmas gift for emergency visa workers: a deportation order on or after 25 December 2021
The government’s proposal was daft to begin with.
An extraordinary proposal, even for this government.
And just in case you would not believe me, here is the BBC tweet announcing it – and the BBC’s name is good upon ’Change, for anything it choses to put its name to.
The necessary implication of the government’s proposal is that by automatic operation of law these lorry drivers who will deliver our Christmas goods and these poultry workers who will provide the Christmas turkeys will become illegal aliens at the stroke of midnight on Christmas Eve.
What a Christmas present for those who choose to come over here to provide services, goods and food for those of us in Great Britain.
The following tweet on this is (I think) intended as satire:
I think everyone expected Brexit to be a snafu, but the sheer magnitude of the cluster Fuck that is GB, or is it UK right now is staggering.
How the hell has Boris not been kicked to the curb my now is the part that I don't understand.
Basically, things are still trundling among. Most people they have not been much affected yet ad its only little things that have been affected. Its like the parable of the slow boil. It's only a bunch of small inconveniences so far, and people are just shrugging.
And the Tories are good at papering over the cracks and keeping things going for a couple of months, and worrying about where to get more paper then.
And the Press is massively, and I mean slavishly pro-Boris. I've seen some unbelievable headlines that are right out of the worst form of Satire. He is the hero of the hour!