Extracts from Commons
debate on matters to be raised before the Conference
recess
(Newcastle-under-Lyme)
(Con):...We still have a number of very good engineering firms on
our business parks, particularly in metalwork. Sadly, though, the
past two decades have seen a significant decline in town centres
across the country, and Newcastle is no exception. That has been
something bigger than politics. It is about shopping habits; it
is about the internet. First, it was about people shopping in
supermarkets
but, increasingly, it has become about people shopping on Amazon.
The stalwarts of the high street of the past—Woolworths,
Debenhams and British Homes Stores—are all gone..
(Glasgow South West)
(SNP):...I note that even the newspapers are going on strike,
including those who work for National World, which includes The
Scotsman and other papers. I offer them full solidarity and
support. It is amazing to see that even the newspapers are going
on strike. The reason they are is very simple: the continuation
of the cost of living crisis. Far too many people across these
islands are struggling with the cost of food. Many of them are in
work, many are receiving state support, and many see that state
support deducted every month in universal credit deductions—a
crazy system—yet they also see supermarkets
posting record profits. Far too many people are struggling to
make their mortgage payments, yet they see the banks posting
record profits. Far too many people are struggling to pay their
energy bills, yet they see the energy companies posting record
profits. Something has to give. The focus of the House when it
returns surely needs to be on dealing with that imbalance. While
that imbalance exists, more people will suffer unnecessarily...
Extract from Lords
consideration of the Windsor Framework (Enforcement etc.)
Regulations 2023
(DUP):...Many
businesses have made it clear that relying on the retail movement
scheme and its enforcement mechanism, as set out in these
regulations, is too complicated, and it is too expensive for the
retail movement scheme to simply take over from the old and very
light-touch scheme for temporary agri-food movements to Northern
Ireland—STAMNI—which it replaces, such that supermarkets can
continue to function on the basis of the old GB-NI supply chains
that attended and defined what was the UK single market for goods
until the end of 31 December 2020, giving effect to UK economic
nationality.
In this context, big supermarkets
I have already referred to, such as Tesco, have been
restructuring their supply chains to move as much as possible of
what previously came from Great Britain to Northern Ireland so
that, after 1 October, it comes from the Republic of Ireland to
Northern Ireland. One might respond to this by arguing that, to
the extent that these regulations apply GB regulations, their
enforcement component cannot have a trade diversionary effect.
There are two difficulties with this assertion. In the first
instance, to the extent that the deployment of these standards is
through an SPS certificate—in relation to which one must have an
export number and have obtained and kept membership of the
trusted trader scheme, negotiated a border control post and
provided “not for EU” labels—this all amounts to costs that do
not apply to goods movements in other parts of the United
Kingdom. This is an increased cost compared to STAMNI...
