The EU and the Irish Border.

[Annie Bynnol]

It boils down to this. The EU will tell the Republic of Ireland to close the border with the north. No amount of pontificating by the Northern Ireland Assembley or the UK government will make a difference. We are banging on about access to the UK by europeans via the republic but it will be the right of access to europe via the republic that will ultimately make the decision. If the UK don't close the border to the south and the Republic of Ireland want open access to the continent you bet your last Euro the EU will...

 

21 000 armed British Soldiers

10 000 armed police

the Navy

the RAF

The Irish Army and Police, could not stop a few hundred IRA, PIRA, INLA etc. crossing the border in both directions.

 

Hundreds of thousands of customs tourists, businesses and criminal gangs that will exploit the differences and use the hundreds of crossings available by water, road and air(drones?).

 

The border cannot be closed physically nor can it be closed politically.

Negotiation on the issues in island of Ireland last for years. This will be no different.

 

The current situation of the Common Travel Area will continue as it is fundamental to the current peace process.

[tzijlstra]

The EU and their obsession with free movement of people caused Brexit to happen.

 

---------- Post added 21-11-2017 at 19:38 ----------

 

 

Best way to work my friend

 

You'll be so disappointed with the immigration figures in a few years, real shame that, I almost feel for you.

[hackey lad]

You'll be so disappointed with the immigration figures in a few years, real shame that, I almost feel for you.

 

tell us more

[Fogey]

The EU and their obsession with free movement of people caused Brexit to happen.

 

---------- Post added 21-11-2017 at 19:38 ----------

 

 

Best way to work my friend

 

Lies, misinformation, xenophobia and ignorance caused brexit to happen.

[andyofborg]

In the same way the EU should have thought about the open borders idea and the problems it would bring?

 

i didn't realise the EU had open borders.

[Geo-atkinson]

21 000 armed British Soldiers

10 000 armed police

the Navy

the RAF

The Irish Army and Police, could not stop a few hundred IRA, PIRA, INLA etc. crossing the border in both directions.

 

Hundreds of thousands of customs tourists, businesses and criminal gangs that will exploit the differences and use the hundreds of crossings available by water, road and air(drones?).

 

The border cannot be closed physically nor can it be closed politically.

Negotiation on the issues in island of Ireland last for years. This will be no different.

 

 

The current situation of the Common Travel Area will continue as it is fundamental to the current peace process.

 

The solution is simple but will require the co-operation of the Republic government. The border between the north and the south can remain open if the Irish effectively do the UK governments job for them and vet everyone that comes to Ireland as a "foreigner" whether they come from the EU or not. Goods is a different matter. It will also mean that everyone coming from Ireland north or south will have to go through passport control when they visit Great Britain Awkward? I agree. Costly? probably no more than a hard border. But it will keep the peace.

[Annie Bynnol]

The solution is simple but will require the co-operation of the Republic government. The border between the north and the south can remain open if the Irish effectively do the UK governments job for them and vet everyone that comes to Ireland as a "foreigner" whether they come from the EU or not. Goods is a different matter. It will also mean that everyone coming from Ireland north or south will have to go through passport control when they visit Great Britain Awkward? I agree. Costly? probably no more than a hard border. But it will keep the peace.

 

The ROI already "vet everyone" who arrives in the ROI for onward travel to the UK even if they do not intend to. As we do in reverse.

 

Suggesting British people have to have passports to travel from Birkenhead to Belfast ie within your own country is ridiculous.

 

What better way of provoking the Unionists in NI is there than your plan of requiring them to show a passport when travelling to London?

 

How would you create a "hard border" between NI and ROI? There are 200+ roads and thousands of tracks, farm tracks, bridleways and footpaths.

[ENG601PM]

The UK's outline proposal was straightforward.

 

No border controls. Goods and services self-declared and dealt with electronically, just like any other import / export controls. Large companies to have occasional premises checks, small business none. It's basically like running a VAT system.

 

A major export item happens to be milk, from Northern Irish udders that passes south to be pasteurised before heading back north for drinking. None of that needs any kind of check at all, unless the EU suddenly imagines that the UK is going to slash regulation and poison its people.

 

There's no magical thinking in any of that. All that's going on here is the EU putting its ideology over people yet again.

[tzijlstra]

A major export item happens to be milk, from Northern Irish udders that passes south to be pasteurised before heading back north for drinking. None of that needs any kind of check at all, unless the EU suddenly imagines that the UK is going to slash regulation and poison its people.

 

Except that the UK is quite happy to raise WTO tarriffs on, for example, milk. Which means that when it crosses the border South it will incur a substantial tarriff (WTO allows for upto 50% on foodstuffs) and then going back North it gets the same tarriff. Making the milk potentially twice as expensive.

 

That isn't what the EU want, it is what the UK want. It is up to the EU AND the UK to come up with a workable solution and it is the UK dragging its feet on that subject.

 

It is all very easy to blame the EU when it is the UK (And by proxy you, as a Leave voter) who wants this change, so you have to accept the consequences. Sad for the Northern Irish, as the issue won't be resolved in a hurry and it will damage them.

[Geo-atkinson]

The UK's outline proposal was straightforward.

 

No border controls. Goods and services self-declared and dealt with electronically, just like any other import / export controls. Large companies to have occasional premises checks, small business none. It's basically like running a VAT system.

 

A major export item happens to be milk, from Northern Irish udders that passes south to be pasteurised before heading back north for drinking. None of that needs any kind of check at all, unless the EU suddenly imagines that the UK is going to slash regulation and poison its people.

 

There's no magical thinking in any of that. All that's going on here is the EU putting its ideology over people yet again.

 

Goods isn't the problem here at all. As you say goods can be controlled electronically. I dare say some will wish to exploit such a system but that is for the authorities to deal with as and when. The problem is control of people With an open border anyone from the EU can leagally pass in to the Irish Republic, and rightly so, But, then they can walk in to Northern Ireland and therefore into the UK unchecked. That makes a mockery of UK border control regarding immigration. If you dont have border control at the irish border then you have to have it on the mainland for all citizens of the island of Ireland regardless.