With just seven weeks to go until an abrupt change to trade terms with Britain, there is mounting concern at continued uncertainty over the final details of what procedures will govern the movement of vital supplies in and out of Ireland on January 1st.

                                                    <p class="no_name">Talks between Britain and the <a class="search" href="/topics/topics-7.1213540?article=true&tag_organisation=European+Union" rel="nofollow">European Union</a> broke off after a week of intense negotiations in London that were overshadowed by turmoil in Downing Street, in which senior aides to British prime minister <a class="search" href="/topics/topics-7.1213540?article=true&tag_person=Boris+Johnson" rel="nofollow">Boris Johnson</a> resigned and there was speculation about the position of chief negotiator <a class="search" href="/topics/topics-7.1213540?article=true&tag_person=David+Frost" rel="nofollow">David Frost</a>. </p>
                                                    <p class="no_name">At one point chief EU negotiator <a class="search" href="/topics/topics-7.1213540?article=true&tag_person=Michel+Barnier" rel="nofollow">Michel Barnier</a> took a break from negotiations and posted an image of himself “looking for level playing fields” in a London park.</p>
                                                    <p class="no_name">Pressure is now mounting for a breakthrough as the EU’s national leaders prepare to gather for a video conference on Thursday, with disagreements over fish and how to ensure fair competition between British and EU companies persisting as a stumbling block.</p>
                                                    <h4 class="crosshead">Dissolve</h4><p class="no_name">Hundreds of billions of euro in trade ride on whether the EU can strike a deal with its former member. Without one, the legal underpinnings of relations built up over decades would dissolve overnight and tariffs would automatically come into force, an economically damaging outcome that the EU side is concerned is becoming harder to avoid.</p>
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                                                                                                                    <p class="no_name">In briefings to businesses on the complex customs declarations requirements that will be required irrespective of whether a deal is reached or not, the British government has been unable to explain the special arrangements that will be in place for goods moving into <a class="search" href="/topics/topics-7.1213540?article=true&tag_location=Northern+Ireland" rel="nofollow">Northern Ireland</a> from January, saying that it would “become clearer in the next week or so”. A significant amount of work remains to be done on the issue, The Irish Times understands.</p>
                                                    <p class="no_name">Britain has asked the EU to allow a grace period for export declarations for goods moving from Britain to Northern Ireland to avoid potential disruption to food supplies, a proposal backed by rival parties in the North as well as industry figures increasingly desperate for certainty.</p>

                                                    <h4 class="crosshead">Rigorous checks</h4><p class="no_name">It comes after supermarkets have warned the range of products they stock could be greatly reduced because of the need for rigorous checks on agri-food products from Britain, and the North’s Department of Agriculture admitted infrastructure needed for checks will not be ready on time.</p>
                                                    <p class="no_name">Yet even if a grace period for declarations is granted, Britain still accepts that consignments would nevertheless be subject to the checks and controls required, The Irish Times understands.</p>
                                                    <p class="no_name"><a class="search" href="/topics/topics-7.1213540?article=true&tag_person=Seamus+Leheny" rel="nofollow">Seamus Leheny</a> from the <a class="search" href="/topics/topics-7.1213540?article=true&tag_organisation=Freight+Transport+Association" rel="nofollow">Freight Transport Association</a> in Northern Ireland said a grace period would be “not just welcome, it’s required, it’s needed because, especially for food, we just aren’t ready.”</p>
                                                    <p class="no_name">Sinn Féin leader Mary Lou McDonald said that the proposal was a “workable solution”, after the North’s cross-party leadership wrote to the European Commission emphasising supermarkets’ concerns that there was a “real threat to the continuity of the supply” of food and other products.</p>
                                                    <p class="no_name">Responding to the letter, a European Commission spokesman said it was taking the warnings “very seriously”, and discussions were continuing with the UK.</p>

Brussels [Belgium], November 13 (ANI): Terming Turkey and Pakistan as countries of concern amid rising terrorists attack in Europe, French Member of European Parliament (MEP) Nicolas Bay has asked European Union (EU) to stop “showering” Ankara and Islamabad with subsidies and customs facilities, rather put sanctions against them.

“During the European Parliamentary plenary of November, 11 French MEP Nicolas Bay from the Identity and Democracy Group had strong words against European aid to Pakistan and Turkey in light of threats coming from both countries. MEP Bay’s comments were made in the context of a debate on the ‘fight against terrorism, freedom of expression and education’,” a press statement read.

Speaking to the European Commissioner Ylva Johansson responsible for Home Affairs, Nicolas Bay was critical of the support being given by the European Commission to the countries of concern. “You are showering countries like Pakistan and Turkey with subsidies and customs facilities. We want to sanction them!”Linking terrorism threats to migration, MEP Bay gave the stark warning that the latest terrorist attacks in Paris had all been committed by migrants arriving in Europe.

Highlighting that over the last year’s terrorist attacks had taken place across Europe in Vienna Madrid, London, Paris, Nice, Milan, Berlin, Amsterdam, Toulouse, Stockholm and St Petersburg, the parliamentarian recognised that “No victim should be forgotten!””The last three attacks in France were perpetrated by people of immigrant backgrounds: It was a Pakistani who attacked journalists in Paris; it was a Chechen who slit the throat of a teacher in Conflans-Sainte-Honorine; it was a Tunisian, freshly arrived via Lampedusa, who murdered three people in a church in Nice.”Bay pointed out that since the Madrid attacks in 2004, 450 people had been killed by Islamist terrorists in Europe and that Europe was losing its identity.

“They attack us for who we are, not what we do. We cannot fight this battle if we refuse to name the enemy,” he said.

Bay singled out both Turkey and Pakistan as countries of concern during his intervention: “Erdogan is also moving forward because the European Union does not dare to act, he is waging war on Armenia, and in Libya by deploying jihadists from the ranks of Da’esh, he is threatening our continent with migratory subversion, he is converting the Basilica of Saint Sophie into a mosque.”Bay further critiqued the Commission for its financing of Islamist organisations stating that EUR5.6 million had been given towards Muslim Brotherhood networks. “In total, over the last 5 years, the European Union has paid 36.5 million euros directly to Islamist organisations or projects in which they were involved.”The debate comes in the aftermath of the recent terrorist attacks that took place in France and Austria. President of the European Parliament, David Sassoli, prior to the debate had opened the European Parliament stating that it was “a shared responsibility to fight all types of extremism”. (ANI)

The leader of the largest party in the European parliament has blamed internal conflict within the British government for stalled Brexit negotiations on Friday, following confirmation that Downing Street advisor Dominic Cummings would be departing his role by Christmas.

On Radio 4’s Today programme, German politician Manfred Weber, who heads the People’s Party and an ally of Chancellor Angela Merkel, cited the “chaotic situation” within the highest echelons of the British government as the cause of the Brexit deadlock.

Weber, who serves as an MEP for the German Christian Social Union, which is linked to Merkel’s Christian Democratic Union (CDU), claimed that the infighting is causing the UK’s position to become unclear.

While speaking to the BBC, Weber outlined that Brexit talks have stalled due for two primary reasons: access to UK fishing waters and the “level playing field” rules which prevent state aid favouring British companies.

“There are fair questions we are asking … If you want to change in the future, with your background of sovereignty, your subsidies, regulations, then we must have an option an opportunity to react to stop to limit your access to our market”, he said. “I see what is happening now in Downing Street. We can also see this as a quite chaotic situation where we don’t have an idea what is really the line in Great Britain. So don’t tell us we should be ready for compromise”.

He said the EU requires a “clear idea from Boris Johnson” and urged the Prime Minister to show “leadership”, pointing to “recent developments in America” where “it will be not so easy with Joe Biden [as US president-elect] to achieve an easy trade deal now”.

“It’s time to take over responsibility and come to a common understanding. Britain has red lines, we have red lines, let’s now come to a compromise”, he added.

The German lawmaker’s comments were rejected by UK government sources. The unnamed official told The Guardian that Prime Minister Boris Johnson has “been clear that he wants a deal if there is a deal to be done. We’ve been negotiating constructively and with creativity”.

“I guess the reason the EU feel the need to say these sorts of things is that they are starting to realise that we meant it when we said there were fundamental principles from which we couldn’t move. We need to see some realism and creativity from their side if we are to bridge the significant gaps that remain”, he added.

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REUTERS / JOHN SIBLEY

Dominic Cummings, special advisor for Britain’s Prime Minister Boris Johnson, arrives at Downing Street, in London, Britain, November 12, 2020

This follows confirmation that Dominic Cummings, Boris Johnson’s top aide and former director of the Vote Leave campaign that spearheaded the UKs movement to leave the EU in 2016, would leave Downing Street by 25 December 2020.

However, this contradicted a previous comment by Cummings, who told the BBC on Thursday that the “rumours of me threatening to resign are invented”. He later clarified that his position remained unchanged from a blog post in January, where wrote that would make himself “largely redundant” by the end of the year.

An unnamed EU source told the Guardian that Cummings’ had been holding the negotiation process “hostage” and his departure could lead to an easing of resistance to compromise.

“His flawed concept of state aid has held the negotiation hostage,” the diplomat said.

Cummings has long advocated for Brexit as an opportunity for the UK’s to subsidise the tech industry beyond the common competition restrictions of the European Union.

Despite the logjam, a deal must be agreed to this month in order to provide sufficient time for parliamentary ratification. If a compromise is not reached, then the UK will leave the bloc without a deal and trade on World Trade Organisation rules.

The EU’s negotiators, heading by Michel Barnier, have been in London this week for discussion over the future relationship. The team will leave on Friday before meeting with their UK counterparts next Monday in Brussels.

• Support €1 trillion in investment for climate action and environmental sustainability in the decade to 2030 
• EIB Group is now aligning all financing activities from end of 2020, with goals of Paris agreement
• More than 50% of annual financing dedicated to green investment by 2025
• More Green advisory services and financing of innovative low carbon technologies
• Support for green capital markets, climate change adaptation, Just Transition projects

On Wednesday, the European Investment Bank (EIB) Board of Directors, composed of representatives from the EU member states, approved the Climate Bank Roadmap (CBR) that sets out in detail how the EIB Group aims to support the objectives of the European Green Deal and sustainable development outside the European Union.

The Climate Bank Roadmap comes at the end of a stakeholder engagement that included two major events in March and June and more than 200 written submissions to the Bank.

The existing EIB Climate Strategy was announced at the Paris Climate Conference in 2015. The EIB Board of Directors approved an update of the strategy, to align it with the 1.5 degree temperature goal. Together with the CBR, this will guide the Bank’s activities in the next 5 years.

“2021-2030 is the critical decade to mobilise the trillions of investment that are required to limit global warming to 1.5 degree, and protect the environment and biodiversity. As requested by the European Council and the EU member states, I am proud to announce that the EIB Group has achieved an important milestone in its transformation to become Europe’s fully fledged climate bank.” said EIB Vice President Ambroise Fayolle responsible for climate action and environment. He added: “The unanimous decision by our shareholders sends an encouraging signal about Europe’s capacity to deliver on climate action and environmental sustainability. The EIB builds upon a very strong track record. It has been Europe’s main instrument in financing climate action for years, and we are on track to deliver on our commitment to invest $100 billion between 2016 and 2020. Now the EIB Group will be the first Multilateral Development Bank to be Paris aligned. The Climate Bank Roadmap ensures that the EIB Group will make a decisive contribution to a green recovery from the COVID-19 crisis, supporting the objectives of the European Green Deal, including a Just Transition for regions that depend on carbon intensive industries, and, globally, by supporting sustainable development activities through all the projects we finance. Cooperation is key and we look forward to working with partners around the world. I want to thank our shareholders for the constructive cooperation, my colleagues at the EIB Group for their hard work, and the hundreds of stakeholders that participated in the development of the Climate Bank Roadmap.”

In November 2019, the EIB Board of Directors agreed a new energy lending policy and confirmed the EIB’s increased ambition in climate action and environmental sustainability. By the end of this decade, the EIB Group aims to support at least €1 trillion in climate action and environmental sustainability investments. The EIB Group commits to align all its activities with the goals and principles of the Paris Agreement by the end of 2020. In addition, the EIB committed to raising its annual financing for climate action and environmental sustainability to more than 50% of our business volumes by 2025, up from just over 30% today. As part of its new Energy Lending Policy, the EIB stopped financing new energy projects reliant on unabated fossil fuels in November 2019. The last remaining projects grandfathered under the previous EIB Energy Policy must complete their ongoing EIB approvals by end 2021.

The EIB Group Climate Bank Roadmap operationalises last year`s commitments and focuses on four key areas:  

1)     Accelerating the transition: The Climate Bank Roadmap sets out support in the focus areas outlined in the European Green Deal, from building greater resilience to climate change through to  protecting nature. This will be used to strengthen the dialogue with EU member states, as well as developing and emerging countries, and to shape business development and product innovation. The EIB Group is well placed to support the entire spectrum of technological innovation: from seed capital for very early-stage development through to senior debt for mature technologies. In 2021, the EIB will come forward with an Adaptation Plan (in support of the forthcoming EU Adaptation Strategy), and a new Transport Lending Policy (in response to new European Commission smarter, more sustainable transport strategy).

2)     Ensuring a Just Transition for all: Supporting cohesion was one of the founding principles of the EIB when it was established in 1958. It continues to be a core priority – and hence the EIB Group will seek to ensure that no people or places are left behind along the transition pathway. The Just Transition Mechanism is the cornerstone of the EU response to this challenge. The EIB Group will play a central role within the Mechanism, supporting to varying degrees each of its three main pillars.  The EIB will come forward with a detailed Just Transition plan in 2021, once the EU Just Transition Mechanism is agreed. Globally, the EIB is reinforcing its efforts around key themes that lie at the heart of social development, environmental sustainability and climate action: gender equality and conflict, fragility and migration.

3)     Supporting Paris-aligned operations: the CBR puts the concept of alignment to the goals and principles of the Paris agreement into operation for the EIB Group. Clear criteria are presented for sectors, and interpreted and applied within the context of all EIB Group products. Examples of specific investments that the EIB Group will no longer support include projects expanding agricultural activity into high carbon stock areas, airport capacity expansions, and new conventional energy intensive plants. In addition, in the context of assessing the economic case for investment, the Bank will use a revised and increased shadow cost of carbon. This forms an integral part of an enhanced economic test towards new road projects. The EIB Group will come forward with detailed guidelines to cover counterparty alignment. This is expected in the course of 2021.

4)     Building strategic coherence and accountability: The EIB Group approach will be based on three cross‐cutting aspects: (1) policy, to set out how climate‐related activities fit within the wider context of sustainable finance and overall environmental and social sustainability – including alignment with the EU Taxonomy; (2) transparency, accountability and quality assurance; and (3) institutional support to the EIB Group’s activities.  In 2021, the EIB will consult on its EIB Group Environmental and Social Sustainability framework and the EIB Environmental and Social Standards.

ONDON, Nov 13 (Reuters) – Britain and the European Union will resume trade talks in Brussels on Monday after so far failing to close gaps between their positions on two of the thorniest issues that have long dogged the negotiations: competition rules and fishing.

With just seven weeks before a status quo transition period ends and Britain completes its Brexit journey out of bloc, both sides have stepped up negotiations on a deal that would protect nearly a trillion dollars of trade from possible disruption.

But after missing a mid-November deadline, British officials say there has been little movement on stubborn differences over fair competition rules and fisheries, with London repeatedly pushing for a deal that would respect the country’s sovereignty.

The EU has urged Britain to compromise, saying its geographic proximity to the bloc means it cannot be handed a deal similar to those Brussels have agreed with countries such as Canada. So far, despite describing some progress, neither side has moved far enough to allow for any breakthrough.

“The talks are continuing in London today, there will be a pause over the weekend and then we are expecting the talks to resume in Brussels on Monday,” a spokesman for British Prime Minister Boris Johnson told reporters on Friday.

“The negotiating teams are working very hard to bridge the significant gaps between us. For our part, we continue to seek solutions that fully respect UK sovereignty but the familiar, difficult issues remain including on the so-called level playing field and fisheries.”

He also moved to deny suggestions that the departure at the end of the year by Johnson’s senior adviser, Dominic Cummings, would mean a softening of position in London, saying: “The government’s position in relation to the future trade agreement negotiations is unchanged.”

While many deadlines have been missed in the years of Brexit talks since Britain voted to leave in 2016, some businesses are getting increasingly twitchy over whether the government is prepared for January without, or even with, a deal.

Many hope that time pressure and a COVID-19 crisis spiralling across much of Europe will focus minds on clinching a deal to avoid chaos in commerce, energy ties and aviation. (Reporting by Elizabeth Piper and William James)