Babak Belurs

Rabu, 16 Desember 2020

Brexit: UK announces new rules for taking pets to EU and Northern Ireland from next year - Sky News

Britons wanting to take their pets to Northern Ireland or abroad to the EU next year will have to apply for an animal health certificate under new post-Brexit rules.

However, more stringent checks will not be needed following an agreement with Brussels, the UK government announced on Wednesday.

Until the end of the Brexit transition period on 31 December, Britons will continue to be able to take their cats, dogs and ferrets to EU countries with them - and return to the UK again - if the usual conditions are met.

These include having a pet passport, having your pet microchipped and having your pet vaccinated against rabies.

However, from 1 January, pet passports will no longer be valid for trips to either the EU or Northern Ireland and those travelling with their cats, dogs or ferrets will have to use an animal health certificate instead.

The government says this is the only new requirement for post-Brexit travel to the EU with pets or assistance dogs, after the UK was granted Part 2 listed status by the European Commission under the bloc's pet travel scheme.

The full requirements for taking pets to the EU or Northern Ireland for the first time after 1 January are:

You must have your dog, cat or ferret microchipped
Vaccinate your dog, cat or ferret against rabies - your pet must be at least 12 weeks old before it can be vaccinated
Wait 21 days after the primary vaccination before travel
Treat your dog against tapeworm 24-120 hours before arriving, if you are travelling to a tapeworm-free country
Visit your vet to get an animal health certificate for your pet, no more than 10 days before travel to the EU.

An animal health certificate needs to be signed by a vet after they have been given proof of a pet's microchipping date and vaccination history.

The certificate will be valid for 10 days after the date of issue for entry into the EU or Northern Ireland, onward travel within the EU or Northern Ireland for four months after the date of issue, and re-entry to Great Britain for four months after the date of issue.

Pets and assistance dogs will also need to enter the EU through a travellers' point of entry, which includes all the major French ports such as Calais, Caen and Dunkirk.

If the UK had been denied listed status by the EU, pet owners could have faced further requirements such as needing a pet's blood sample to be sent to an EU-approved testing laboratory.

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The government said it would continue to press the EU to be granted Part 1 listed status, which would mean the requirements for pet travel for Britons could remain very similar to as they are before 31 December.

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said the UK "has one of the most rigorous pet checking regimes in Europe and currently meets all the requirements for Part 1 listed status".

It added that there will be no change to the current health preparations or documents for pets entering Great Britain from the EU or Northern Ireland from 1 January.

Christine Middlemiss, the UK's chief veterinary officer, said: "We have been granted Part 2 listed third country status by the EU which will ensure that travelling with your pet continues from 1 January onwards.

"Your vet will be able to advise what you need to do in order to obtain the correct documentation to travel and you can find the latest pet travel advice on gov.uk or by searching 'pet travel'."

The government said it was working with the Northern Ireland Executive to agree an approach to enforcing the new requirements that "supports pet owners and assistance dog users while the government pursues a permanent solution".

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2020-12-16 15:11:15Z
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Brexit: UK announces new rules for taking pets abroad to EU from next year - Sky News

Britons wanting to take their pets to Northern Ireland or abroad to the EU next year will have to apply for an animal health certificate under new post-Brexit rules.

However, more stringent checks will not be needed following an agreement with Brussels, the UK government announced on Wednesday.

These include having a pet passport, having your pet microchipped and having your pet vaccinated against rabies.

The full requirements for taking pets to the EU or Northern Ireland for the first time after 1 January are:

You must have your dog, cat or ferret microchipped
Vaccinate your dog, cat or ferret against rabies - your pet must be at least 12 weeks old before it can be vaccinated
Wait 21 days after the primary vaccination before travel
Treat your dog against tapeworm 24-120 hours before arriving, if you are travelling to a tapeworm-free country
Visit your vet to get an animal health certificate for your pet, no more than 10 days before travel to the EU.

An animal health certificate needs to be signed by a vet after they have been given proof of a pet's microchipping date and vaccination history.

Pets and assistance dogs will also need to enter the EU through a travellers' point of entry, which includes all the major French ports such as Calais, Caen and Dunkirk.

If the UK had been denied listed status by the EU, pet owners could have faced further requirements such as needing a pet's blood sample to be sent to an EU-approved testing laboratory.

Subscribe to Sophy Ridge on Sunday on Apple podcasts, Google podcasts, Spotify, Spreaker

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs said the UK "has one of the most rigorous pet checking regimes in Europe and currently meets all the requirements for Part 1 listed status".

It added that there will be no change to the current health preparations or documents for pets entering Great Britain from the EU or Northern Ireland from 1 January.

"Your vet will be able to advise what you need to do in order to obtain the correct documentation to travel and you can find the latest pet travel advice on gov.uk or by searching 'pet travel'."

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Covid: Boxing Day sales off in Wales ahead of lockdown on 28 December - BBC News

Non-essential shops in Wales will close from the end of trading on Christmas Eve, with an alert level four lockdown starting four days later.

Close-contact services, such as hair salons, will also have to shut before Christmas, First Minister Mark Drakeford has announced.

All pubs, cafes and restaurants will close at 18:00 GMT on Christmas Day.

Meanwhile Mr Drakeford said only two households should meet during the festive period.

Opposition parties warned of the potential for confusion and mixed messaging, with the stronger advice coming despite an agreement between the UK nations to stick to plans to allow three households to mix between 23 and 27 December.

No formal joint announcement had been made by the time of the Welsh Government press conference.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson insisted the four nations had "unanimously" agreed to keep the relaxed rules over Christmas, despite Scotland also telling fewer to meet.

UK leaders have come under pressure to revise the plans amid rising cases.

How will Wales' new lockdown work?

The situation in Wales was "extremely serious", Mr Drakeford said, with one in five Covid-19 tests returning a positive result.

More than 2,100 people, "equivalent to five full general hospitals" were being treated in the NHS with Covid, he said.

Wales will go into a level four lockdown, the highest possible, from 28 December, with some sectors closing during the Christmas period.

Under the recently-published plans people will be expected to stay at home, with travel only allowed for essential reasons.

From 28 December, public facilities and holiday accommodation must be shut, and wedding receptions and wakes will need to be called off.

Pubs and restaurants had already been told not to sell alcohol earlier in December, and outdoor and indoor attractions - such as cinemas - are closed now.

The lockdown has no end date and will be reviewed every three weeks, beginning in January.

As well as non-essential retail, leisure and fitness centres will have to shut after Christmas Eve.

What have the opposition said?

For the Conservatives, Andrew RT Davies said the first minister was causing "more confusion" over the Christmas rules for household mixing - which had not been firmly announced by the time of the press conference.

"That's no way to deliver this really important news - news which will have implications for how people will spend this really important Christmas period".

Plaid Cymru leader Adam Price said there was "potential for confusion and mixed messaging" as a result of the decision to allow rules to be relaxed over Christmas while strengthening public guidance.

"It is absolutely the right thing to do to change the guidance - that's what we call for certainly as a minimum because of the worsening situation in Wales", he said.

'Many arrange Christmas Day meals'

Mr Drakeford defended allowing hospitality businesses to stay open until 18:00 on Christmas Day.

"We are anxious not to face that industry with additional difficulties at this point," he said.

"We know that many people who live alone arrange their Christmas by booking a meal on Christmas Day, so that they can be in the company of other people.

"I wanted to be able to honour that so that those people do not face an even bleaker Christmas, even more alone and they otherwise would be with all the other harms that come from that."

What do the latest figures tell us?

Nine council areas have more than 20% of tests coming back positive in the last week.

The World Health Organisation has recommended this should be below 5% for places to come out of restrictions.

NHS Wales has again reported record numbers of patients with Covid-19 in hospital beds.

This amounted to 2,143 on Tuesday, 17% more than a week before, and included 614 patients still recovering from the virus but not well enough to be discharged.

Under-pressure hospitals in the Aneurin Bevan health board have the most Covid patients - 620, which is 45% of all patients in its beds.

Numbers of Covid patients in critical care across Wales are also at their highest since the end of April.

Meanwhile, the latest R-number - the rate at which the virus is estimated to be transmitting - is estimated to have increased to a range between 0.9 and 1.2 in Wales. Anything above 1 indicates Covid is increasing.

The Sage scientific body estimates the virus could be shrinking or growing by between -1% and 4% a day in Wales.

Wales-wide rules

Later Mr Drakeford told the Senedd that despite the fact there is variation of coronavirus in parts of Wales, the whole country will be subjected to the highest restrictions.

"Coronavirus is rising in every part of our country and we have an obligation to take the action which will protect all parts of our country".

"If some parts of Wales demonstrate in a reliable and sustainable way that they are in a different part of the spectrum to other parts of Wales, well that can be recognised but we are not in that position today", he said.

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2020-12-16 14:58:00Z
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Covid: Boxing Day sales off in Wales ahead of lockdown on 28 December - BBC News

Non-essential shops in Wales will close from the end of trading on Christmas Eve, with an alert level four lockdown starting four days later.

Close-contact services, such as hair salons, will also have to shut before Christmas, First Minister Mark Drakeford has announced.

All pubs, cafes and restaurants will close at 18:00 GMT on Christmas Day.

Meanwhile Mr Drakeford said only two households should meet during the festive period.

No formal joint announcement had been made by the time of the Welsh Government press conference.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson insisted the four nations had "unanimously" agreed to keep the relaxed rules over Christmas, despite Scotland also telling fewer to meet.

UK leaders have come under pressure to revise the plans amid rising cases.

How will Wales' new lockdown work?

The situation in Wales was "extremely serious", Mr Drakeford said, with one in five Covid-19 tests returning a positive result.

More than 2,100 people, "equivalent to five full general hospitals" were being treated in the NHS with Covid, he said.

Wales will go into a level four lockdown, the highest possible, from 28 December, with some sectors closing during the Christmas period.

Under the recently-published plans people will be expected to stay at home, with travel only allowed for essential reasons.

From 28 December, public facilities and holiday accommodation must be shut, and wedding receptions and wakes will need to be called off.

Pubs and restaurants had already been told not to sell alcohol earlier in December, and outdoor and indoor attractions - such as cinemas - are closed now.

The lockdown has no end date and will be reviewed every three weeks, beginning in January.

As well as non-essential retail, leisure and fitness centres will have to shut after Christmas Eve.

What have the opposition said?

"That's no way to deliver this really important news - news which will have implications for how people will spend this really important Christmas period".

Plaid Cymru leader Adam Price said there was "potential for confusion and mixed messaging" as a result of the decision to allow rules to be relaxed over Christmas while strengthening public guidance.

"It is absolutely the right thing to do to change the guidance - that's what we call for certainly as a minimum because of the worsening situation in Wales", he said.

'Many arrange Christmas Day meals'

Mr Drakeford defended allowing hospitality businesses to stay open until 18:00 on Christmas Day.

"We are anxious not to face that industry with additional difficulties at this point," he said.

"We know that many people who live alone arrange their Christmas by booking a meal on Christmas Day, so that they can be in the company of other people.

"I wanted to be able to honour that so that those people do not face an even bleaker Christmas, even more alone and they otherwise would be with all the other harms that come from that."

What do the latest figures tell us?

Nine council areas have more than 20% of tests coming back positive in the last week.

The World Health Organisation has recommended this should be below 5% for places to come out of restrictions.

NHS Wales has again reported record numbers of patients with Covid-19 in hospital beds.

This amounted to 2,143 on Tuesday, 17% more than a week before, and included 614 patients still recovering from the virus but not well enough to be discharged.

Under-pressure hospitals in the Aneurin Bevan health board have the most Covid patients - 620, which is 45% of all patients in its beds.

Numbers of Covid patients in critical care across Wales are also at their highest since the end of April.

The Sage scientific body estimates the virus could be shrinking or growing by between -1% and 4% a day in Wales.

Wales-wide rules

Later Mr Drakeford told the Senedd that despite the fact there is variation of coronavirus in parts of Wales, the whole country will be subjected to the highest restrictions.

"Coronavirus is rising in every part of our country and we have an obligation to take the action which will protect all parts of our country".

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Covid: UK keeps Christmas rules but some advice changes - BBC News

The four UK nations have "unanimously" agreed to keep relaxed Christmas Covid rules in place, the prime minister has said - but some advice will change.

The eased rules will still be in place between 23 to 27 December, but sterner warnings will be issued to urge people to keep social contact low.

Boris Johnson said people must show "personal responsibility" and try to avoid contact with vulnerable people.

Wales and Scotland have separately updated their advice.

Only two households are now advised to mix in Wales, and First Minister Mark Drakeford has announced that all non-essential retail and close contact services in Wales must close at the end of trading on Christmas Eve.

Scotland's First Minister Nicola Sturgeon said her "strong recommendation" was that people should, if they can, spend Christmas "in your own home with your own household".

UK leaders have come under pressure to review the five-day plan as Covid infections continue to rise in Wales and parts of south-east England.

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2020-12-16 12:48:00Z
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Brexit: EU's Ursula von der Leyen says there is a 'path to an agreement' - Sky News

There is a "path" to a Brexit trade deal being agreed before the end of the month, the president of the European Commission has said.

"As things stand, I cannot tell you whether there will be a deal or not," Ursula von der Leyen told the European Parliament in Brussels.

"But I can tell you that there is a path to an agreement now. The path may be very narrow but it is there."

Britain left the EU at the end of January and entered into an 11-month transition period, following EU rules and regulations whilst trying to negotiate a free trade deal by the end of this year.

The two teams have been attempting to thrash out an agreement ahead of that deadline, although negotiations have continued to remain stuck on a number of issues.

Ms von der Leyen indicated that fishing rights remains a key sticking point, but suggested progress had been made on the so-called "level playing field".

This is a reference to measures to prevent what is seen as unfair competition through the lowering of standards or the use of state subsidies.

"We have found a way forward on most issues but two issues still remain outstanding: the level playing field and fisheries," she continued.

"I am glad to report that issues linked to governance now have largely been resolved. The next days are going to be decisive."

On fisheries, Ms von der Leyen told the parliament "the discussion is still very difficult" and it sometimes felt as if "we will not be able to resolve these questions", but she vowed to continue to negotiate.

Her remarks were reflected on financial markets as the pound gained half a cent against the US dollar.

Sterling hit $1.35 - continuing its recovery from lows of $1.31 last week when the talks looked to be heading towards a no-deal outcome.

Shares were also higher with the FTSE 100 and domestic-focused FTSE 250 up by more than 1%.

The European Commission president held talks with Boris Johnson on Sunday, with the pair agreeing to "go the extra mile" and continue discussions.

A UK government source said on Monday that the talks "remain difficult" and "have not made significant progress in recent days".

Despite the two sides agreeing to continue discussions, the prime minister has described no-deal as the "most likely" scenario.

Mr Johnson has insisted that Britain can thrive in this scenario.

But opponents say having to trade on World Trade Organisation terms from 1 January would cause problems for business and push up prices for consumers.

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2020-12-16 10:08:20Z
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Supreme Court lifts ban on Heathrow third runway - BBC News

The Supreme Court has breathed new life into plans for a third runway at Heathrow Airport.

The scheme was previously blocked by the Appeal Court, who said the government’s airports strategy didn’t meet up-to-date UK climate targets.

But the Supreme Court has ruled the strategy was legitimately based on previous, less stringent, climate targets at the time it was agreed.

The firm behind Heathrow can now seek planning permission for the runway.

But it still faces major obstacles, including having to persuade a public enquiry of the case for expansion.

And if planning inspectors approve the scheme, the government will still have the final say.

What are the Heathrow third runway plans?

Ministers have been advised by their Climate Change Committee that, in order to keep emissions down, Heathrow should only expand if regional airports contract.

This will pose a problem for a government that’s committed to improving infrastructure away from the South-East.

And a full application from Heathrow Airport may still be more than a year away as the airport re-assembles a planning team and strives to cope with Covid.

'Important moment'

Heathrow will comment on the decision shortly. But the business coalition Back Heathrow’s executive director, Parmjit Dhanda, celebrated the news that the runway can progress to the planning application stage.

She said: “This is an important moment for local communities, desperate for jobs and apprenticeships at a very hard time for our economy.

“It is also a huge moment for the UK as it moves towards an uncertain Brexit, but now with the confidence that international trade could be boosted by additional capacity at the country’s only hub airport.

“We believe this news reflects a unity of purpose between the highest court in the land and our parliament – which has already delivered a majority of 296 for sustainable expansion at Heathrow.”

The ruling is a blow for campaigners who’ve been hounding the runway project in the courts because they say it breaches the government’s policy of removing almost all carbon emissions from the economy by 2050 – the so-called Net Zero commitment.

But environmentalists still plan to challenge every stage of the planning application in the courts – including at the European Court of Human Rights, where campaigners will argue that relying on outdated emissions targets is inconsistent with the right to life.

The old UK emissions strategy was based on the target of holding global temperature rise to 2C, whereas the latest government aim is a maximum temperature rise of 1.5C. This means emissions must be cut by more than previously thought.

On the back of the previous Appeal Court ruling in their favour, environmentalists have launched copy-cat legal actions against plans for other government projects that will fuel climate change.

These include the £27bn roads programme; expanding North Sea oil and gas; and a proposed Cumbria coal mine.

Map of Heathrow airport showing expansion area

They fear the Supreme Court ruling signals that judges aren’t willing to hold the government’s feet to the fire on climate policy - as the Dutch Supreme Court did last year, when it ruled that the country’s failure to act urgently against climate change constituted a violation of human rights.

Similar cases are underway in several other nations where citizens want politicians to keep promises to tackle emissions.

'Terrible verdict'

The Supreme Court case was taken by Friends of the Earth in conjunction with a tiny NGO called Plan B.

Its founder Tim Crosland told BBC News: “This is a terrible verdict – the runway plan is in clear breach of climate change targets and it can’t be allowed to go ahead. I can’t imagine how the judges came to this decision.”

Paul McGuinness from the No 3rd Runway Coalition, said before the court ruling that a decision in favour of Heathrow wouldn’t change the underlying case against the proposed runway.

He argued: “Heathrow expansion can’t proceed. Putting aside investors' lack of appetite to find new money - even to maintain the airport as a going concern through the pandemic - expanding Heathrow no longer ticks any boxes.

“Since the Airports Commission recommended Heathrow expansion, five years ago, the world has changed and the assessments on noise, air quality and carbon have been exposed as inadequate.”

Prime Minister Boris Johnson is a long-term opponent of Heathrow expansion, and significantly, his government didn’t join the appeal against the previous Appeal Court verdict, which was made by Heathrow Airport plc.

A government spokesperson said before the verdict: “We have always been clear that Heathrow expansion is a private sector project which must meet strict criteria on air quality, noise and climate change, as well as being privately financed, affordable, and delivered in the best interest of consumers”.

Follow Roger on Twitter @rharrabin

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2020-12-16 09:55:00Z
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Rabu, 16 Desember 2020

More from Brexit

More from Brexit

What have the opposition said?

'Many arrange Christmas Day meals'

What do the latest figures tell us?

Wales-wide rules

What have the opposition said?

'Many arrange Christmas Day meals'

What do the latest figures tell us?

Wales-wide rules

More from Brexit

'Important moment'

'Terrible verdict'