Brexit: Rules for moving goods from NI to GB delayed

Unfettered access for NI goods was a central Brexit promise from the UK government

New post-Brexit rules for moving goods from Northern Ireland to the rest of the UK have been delayed.

They were due to have been implemented by the end of this year but the government says that will not now happen.

The rules concern the definition of which goods qualify for "unfettered access" when moving from NI to GB.

The definition of qualifying goods is currently very wide and the government has always intended to narrow it.

Unfettered access for Northern Ireland goods was a central Brexit promise from the UK government.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson famously told Northern Ireland businesses that if anyone asked them to fill in a form for moving goods to GB they should throw it in a bin.

In November 2019, he said: "There will be no forms, no checks, no barriers of any kind - you will have unfettered access."

That promise is given legal form by the Qualifying NI Goods Regulations which say that any goods that are in free circulation in Northern Ireland count as qualifying.

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Goods which start their journey in the EU do not qualify for unfettered access if they are moved through Northern Ireland into GB for "an avoidance purpose".

The government has promised to legislate for a tighter definition since it published its initial guidance in October 2020.

In December 2020, it said the initial wide definition was necessary to "prevent disruption and maintain continuity".

It added that in the longer term the definition would be refined so that only "genuine" Northern Ireland businesses benefit from unfettered access.

'Major changes' to NI Protocol

More recently it said that that only businesses "established" in Northern Ireland will benefit from unfettered access and it has been consulting with business groups on what that should mean in practice.

A government spokesperson told the BBC that the delay was related to its intention to negotiate major changes to the NI Brexit deal, known as the Protocol.

They added: "While those discussions with the EU are ongoing the current arrangements for unfettered access - which ensure no processes for goods moving from Northern Ireland to GB - will be maintained and no changes will be introduced during 2021.

"We will keep this under review and give traders plenty of notice if anything changes."

The definition of qualifying goods is likely to come into sharper focus when the government starts implementing new controls on goods moving from the EU to GB.

In October, EU agri-food products will need export health certificates to enter GB with physical checking of goods starting in 2022.

That could increase the incentive for producers in the Republic of Ireland to route GB exports through Northern Ireland.