Some effects of Brexit on unimportant people

GG13 The funeral was on 16th March so about 3 weeks ago, it was the decision not to prosecute anyone - which would be nigh on impossible- the unionists are angry about but also Westminster's Brexit treaty which treats NI differently from the rest of the UK - which they promised not to and which the DUP opposed - or maybe you didn't know that? So its all coming to a head.

GrannyGravy13

I watched an item on the BBC from NI, the reporter stated that the current violence relates to a funeral several days ago where a number Sin Fein politicians attended against the current Covid regulations. They were not fined which under the guidelines they should have been, this has now escalated to the last 3/4 nights of violence directed towards the police.

Not sure how you can link a funeral to Brexit?

Because the loyalists who are creating the violence have stated that they are protesting because they are totally against the Brexit agreement.

The funeral is a different issue, but will get muddled in with it all.

We knew that this Brexit agreement was playing with fire.

Johnson needs to step in with an early intervention (today) to try to prevent this getting any worse.

Not sure how you can link a funeral to Brexit?

NI is a ticking bomb because of Brexit. It just needs an excuse to set it off.

I suspect that had we not left the EU this would not have escalated in such a fashion.

I watched an item on the BBC from NI, the reporter stated that the current violence relates to a funeral several days ago where a number Sin Fein politicians attended against the current Covid regulations. They were not fined which under the guidelines they should have been, this has now escalated to the last 3/4 nights of violence directed towards the police.

Not sure how you can link a funeral to Brexit?

I was absolutely horrified watching the burning vehicles in Belfast on the news last night. For the people of Ireland both sides of the border I hope this does not escalate,
The Good Friday agreement problems as they came to light should have been enough to stop Brexit in its tracks. Who on earth would risk going back to all those years of attacks - oh I forgot - people not wishing to pay tax on their millions!
Can anybody explain why people need so many millions in the bank? I can understand paying off a mortgage and investing in a business etc but not just stashing money away. Why don’t they want to pay taxes? It is reasonable to want to help and fund your country surely.

Northern Ireland and the violence is escalating.

I think they are at a dangerous time.

lemongrove

Funny that isn’t it? The EU countries were perfectly happy with UK quality of water standards when they accepted our shellfish products prior to us leaving the EU.Nothing changed in the quality from December to January.
The EU bloc will do all they can to stop the UK doing well...but we will.
Money is being provided to them (fishing businesses) meanwhile, and yes it’s a problem, and yes, it will be solved.

If you listen to the live shellfish exporters you will learn that this problem will not be solved by any means apart from bringing our coastal waters up to Grade A standard.

The shellfish cannot be purified in the UK before export to the EU because it shortens their 'shelf life' and many would be dead or dying before they reached the EU market. So building more depuration plants in the UK won't do anything for it.

The EU won't alter its rules for a third country, either. Rules, incidentally, which the UK were insistent on making when we were in the EU because they eliminated third country competition for our shellfish. Rules which our government knew about before the appalling Brexit deal. Article about this here:

yorkshirebylines.co.uk/hapless-defra-secretary-eustice-humiliated-and-schooled-by-the-eu/

The shellfish that the EU were 'happy' about were depurated in the EU before being sold.

lemongrove

Funny that isn’t it? The EU countries were perfectly happy with UK quality of water standards when they accepted our shellfish products prior to us leaving the EU.Nothing changed in the quality from December to January.
The EU bloc will do all they can to stop the UK doing well...but we will.
Money is being provided to them (fishing businesses) meanwhile, and yes it’s a problem, and yes, it will be solved.

Not before many of them will have lost their businesses.

No lemongrove:the EU weren’t happy with the quality of U.K. waters, that’s why they had standards which we didn’t meet. The crustaceans had to go through a purification process in an EU country, that was only acceptable as we were a member state. Non member states from similar water quality not acceptable. It’s funny how we aren’t happy to be treated as non members when we asked not to be a member. It also makes me cross that 84% of our rivers are below EU standards of water quality.

Live bivalve mussels cannot be imported into the EU unless pre treated in a purification plant. We don't have any of those. When we were members we weren't importing, we were already there. Now we've left, we're importing. Simples.

Any third party country can bypass this if they have what are classed as Grade A waters. As before, we only have a tiny proportion on our waters graded A.

Another example of wanting to leave but still benefit from the advantages of membership.

www.bighospitality.co.uk/Article/2021/02/04/Future-of-UK-shellfish-industry-in-doubt-as-EU-confirms-live-import-ban

Funny that isn’t it? The EU countries were perfectly happy with UK quality of water standards when they accepted our shellfish products prior to us leaving the EU.Nothing changed in the quality from December to January.
The EU bloc will do all they can to stop the UK doing well...but we will.
Money is being provided to them (fishing businesses) meanwhile, and yes it’s a problem, and yes, it will be solved.

I was listening to the Food programme at lunch time and the plight of, in particular, mussel farmers, but also all the almost entirely small businesses involved in harvesting crustacae.

Most of their catch is exported to the EU and they were worried about new rules after Brexit but the government assured them there would be no change and they would still have the same access to EU markets as before.

Come 1 Jan 2021. All export orders have been turned back, because the government may have thought they had an agreement, but they don't, and the EU now insists that all imports of crustacea from the UK have to match water quality standards that all third party countries have to meet in order to sell in the EU. Their businesses have all but been destroyed.

They have met with government ministers, who just mutter about finding new markets and developing the UK market. Not much help when you are harvesting several tons of shell fish a week and they have a short sell by date.

Just as was warned and predicted, Northern Ireland is showing signs of the peace breaking down. At the moment from the loyalists who are extremely unhappy with the Brexit deal, but if the violence continues the nationalists will undoubtedly be drawn in.

I get so bloody angry at the thought of all the work by the U.K. and USA in bringing peace to Ireland, being trashed by this useless, lying and corrupt government.

DillytheGardener

Very kind of you all to say. Things came to a head with my relationships with both sons during the referendum and subsequent decision to leave. I saw a therapist and am slowly working on listening and thinking before I speak and act and also to relinquish control. I came from a generation when decisions were made, even in adulthood by the generation before. So I’m a work in progress you might say. Therapy was for me has been very useful.

Good for you learning to change. I bet it’s made all your relationships better now that you’re able to more effectively listen and be flexible.

DillytheGardener

Very kind of you all to say. Things came to a head with my relationships with both sons during the referendum and subsequent decision to leave. I saw a therapist and am slowly working on listening and thinking before I speak and act and also to relinquish control. I came from a generation when decisions were made, even in adulthood by the generation before. So I’m a work in progress you might say. Therapy was for me has been very useful.

That is really nice to hear I found therapy very useful too x

Very kind of you all to say. Things came to a head with my relationships with both sons during the referendum and subsequent decision to leave. I saw a therapist and am slowly working on listening and thinking before I speak and act and also to relinquish control. I came from a generation when decisions were made, even in adulthood by the generation before. So I’m a work in progress you might say. Therapy was for me has been very useful.

Sorry for repeating myself but thanks again for your honest posts Dilly.

Dilly, for some one who professes to be stubborn, you are really gracious in your posting and replies. I suspect you were not alone in voting in the way you did because you wanted the money to go to the NHS.

Dilly Thank you for your response. I suspect that if the vote had gone the other way they would not have left - no reason to because the arts used to thrive in the UK and plenty of funding and exhibition spaces etc.

I have been watching Grayson Perry's Arts Club and have been amazed at the quality of the work submitted, mainly from amateurs.

Sadly there seems to be a number of GNers in a similar situation where there children have moved abroad because of their work situation. I hope that you will get to see them again soon.

Dinahmo I didn’t feel attacked at all no need to worry. I voted for it because I believed the hype I’m sorry to say. I thought the money we spent on the EU could be better spent at home, I thought the NHS couldn’t cope with more immigration, I wanted the country to be independent. My sons both railed against my and DH’s votes, but unfortunately stubbornness is one of my less attractive traits and I didn’t listen to what they were saying.

I never really was that interested in politics and trusted the conservative government would always do the right thing by it’s citizens. I’ve been frankly horrified by both my children’s career fields drying up in the U.K. without any assistance to the fields by the gov.

Another poster asked about NZ funding, I think a lot has changed in NZ since the dancer you knew moved to the U.K. Jacinda Arden launched a fund for the arts that has benefited them both and academia apparently pays better there too. Dil works a short 3 day week and has a pretty decent income combined with her commissions. She is the primary breadwinner and son a stay at home dad, which they couldn’t have afforded to do here.

They are very happy, so with therapy I’ve made my peace with them doing the best for their family but it is very hard, and when I’m awake in the middle of the night I wonder if the vote had gone the other way if they would have all left.

GrannyRose15

You are very fond of telling me I am talking nonsense, growstuff. It's not something I tend to do if I can help it. Just wait and see. Another scheme will come along soon.

There is 'another scheme' GrannyRose. A world beating scheme. It's called the Turing Scheme. As mentioned by growstuff. There won't be another one. Not under this government.

As for 'waiting', we've waited for 5 years and all we've seen is Leave 'leaders' lying through their teeth about the EU and our possible relationship and determinedly blocking any attempt to reach an agreement which would benefit the UK.

5 years, culminating in electing the most corrupt and incompetent government in my lifetime (if not ever in the history of the UK) whose 'deal' has practically destroyed several industries and hundreds (if not thousands) of businesses in the first 3 months.

Some of us are rather tired of waiting.

Have all Brexit supporters had some kind of directive to use the phrase "Wait and see" as often as they can?

You are very fond of telling me I am talking nonsense, growstuff. It's not something I tend to do if I can help it. Just wait and see. Another scheme will come along soon.

GrannyRose I know two people who have emigrated to an EU country in the last year - one to Germany and one to Spain. Both have gone through all legal channels, obtained residency, bought health insurance, etc. It has been possible, but only because in both cases they are wealthy and don't need to seek work.

Covid-19 has not affected them in any way, except to make flexibility of travel more difficult.

The point I'm making is that they have only been able to to do what they have because they have money. Many people would not be able to afford to do what they have done, although they could have done before Brexit. Even short stays and holidays will be more expensive and some people will not be able to afford the increased health insurance, etc.

As for foreign students, I'm afraid you're talking nonsense. My daughter was an Erasmus student and my son, who is currently at university, had hoped to do the same. It is quite simply not possible. The opportunities aren't there and only the richest students will be able to afford the kind of exchanges which Erasmus previously offered. The Turing scheme is a pathetic substitute, which is why Eire is paying for Northern Irish students to continue with something like Erasmus, as (I believe) are Wales and Scotland. In any case, Erasmus was also about joint projects in schools and had many benefits for more people than actually took part in exchanges.

That won’t be possible for people wishing to spend longer in a Schengen area country as passports are now logged on entry and exit and anyone found to be flouting the rules will face a fine or be banned from entering the zone for a few years at least. A 90 day visit in any period of 180 days is the maximum allowed - which is why countries are issuing residency cards to those legally living in their country.