Explanatory memoranda on EU documents

Explanatory memoranda (EM) summarise important EU documents and the UK government’s policy position on them. They are submitted as written evidence to the UK Parliament, and each EM summarises a specific EU document and the government’s policy position on it.

EMs provide a useful tool with which to identify new or amended EU legislation that applies (or may potentially apply) directly to Northern Ireland under the terms of the Protocol.

Scrutiny

All EMs are considered by the Commons European Scrutiny Committee and the Lords European Affairs Committee and its Sub-Committee on the Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland.

The House of Commons European Scrutiny Committee assesses the legal and/or political importance of draft EU legislation deposited in Parliament by the UK Government. In its published reports, the committee highlights, amongst other proposals, those draft EU proposals which relate to the Protocol. Proposals which the committee has highlighted in recent reports are shown below. 

New EU scheme for the protection of geographical indications for craft and industrial products

This EU document is legally important because:

• It would establish a new EU-wide system for legally restricting the use of specific “Geographical Indications” (GIs) for the marketing of traditional craft and industrial        products made only in those areas, like Meissen porcelain or Donegal tweed. This new EU scheme may in due course also apply directly to goods sold in Northern Ireland under the terms of the Northern Ireland Protocol, although its precise effects there remain uncertain (in part because of the Government’s proposed changes, as set out in the Northern Ireland Protocol Bill); and
• Producers in England, Scotland and Wales that make goods linked by name to a specific region, for example, Harris Tweed, may also be able to apply for GI status for their products in the EU market, but the Government has suggested the number of British products that could benefit is low.

Substances of Human Origin

This EU document is politically important because:

• It applies to Northern Ireland (NI) under the terms of the Northern Ireland Protocol and has implications for Great Britain (GB);
• The Minister acknowledges that divergence between GB and NI as well as the EU could have implications for patients in NI reliant on GB, and patients in GB reliant on the EU in some circumstances; and
• The Government is considering whether to introduce similar changes, subject to ongoing analysis and discussion with the UK’s devolved governments.

Equivalence of seed potatoes

This EU document is politically important because:

• the EU is still refusing to grant equivalence to seed potatoes produced in Great Britain, meaning that they cannot be exported from Great Britain to the EU and Northern Ireland.

Fluorinated Greenhouse Gases

This EU document is politically important because:

• it will apply in Northern Ireland, creating divergence with regulation currently applicable in Great Britain; and
• the Government intends to take the Commission’s proposal into account when reviewing GB legislation in this area.

Reform of the EU Customs Union and the EU Single Customs Window

This EU document is legally and politically important because:

• it will establish a ‘Single Customs Window’ (SCW) for goods entering the EU from non-EU countries like the UK, in essence a new way of connecting IT systems to enable traders to clear certain EU border formalities more quickly and efficiently. In parallel, the European Commission is also considering more fundamental reforms to the operation of the EU’s external customs border for trade in goods with non-EU countries like the UK, with proposals due later this year;
• changes to the EU’s customs border are directly relevant for the UK given the significant volume of UK/EU trade in goods. The Government has identified potential opportunities to link the SCW to the UK’s own Single Trade Window, currently in development; and
• as EU customs formalities continue to apply in Northern Ireland, the UK may also have to implement EU customs reforms there (including for use by traders sending goods there from Great Britain). However, in light of the Government’s recent Northern Ireland Protocol Bill to dis-apply parts of the Protocol unilaterally, it is unclear what effect EU reforms in this area might have under UK law in respect of Northern Ireland.

Ecodesign for sustainable products

This EU document is politically important because:

• it will affect the UK under all scenarios, likely applying in some form under the Northern Ireland Protocol and introducing new sustainability requirements with which GB exports to the EU will need to comply;
• domestic policy in this area is planned, but may cause supply chain friction if the EU and UK act in isolation; and
• the Government failed to identify it as relevant under the Protocol, only
  depositing it for parliamentary scrutiny once informed by the EU that it was applicable under the Protocol.

Deforestation and forest degradation

This EU document is legally and politically important because:

• while it is likely to apply, at least in part, to Northern Ireland there is considerable uncertainty about how much of it should apply;
• separately, the UK is consulting on its own similar, but not identical, system; and
• any divergence between the EU and UK approaches could prove challenging both within the UK but also internationally given global efforts in this area.

EU rules on minimum VAT Rates: potential implications for the UK under the Northern Ireland Protocol

This EU document is legally and politically important because:

• the new EU VAT Rates Directive, agreed in April 2022, gives individual EU countries more flexibility to reduce or remove VAT on goods. EU rules in this area remain applicable in Northern Ireland under the Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland but the Government has, in its new Northern Ireland Protocol Bill, included clauses giving powers to Ministers to vary VAT (and excise duty) rates and structures in ways not otherwise permitted in Northern Ireland.
• It is unclear to what extent this new Directive would obviate the need for the powers foreseen by the Bill, or how those powers—if exercised by a Minister—could affect the UK’s access to EU trade databases that play a key part in the collection of VAT (and excise duties) on goods brought into the UK via the land border with Ireland.
• The effects of the Directive in Northern Ireland could also be affected by the substance of any negotiated settlement reached with the EU on changing the operation of the Protocol.

Veterinary Medicines

This EU document is politically important because:

• it relates to the implementation of the new EU veterinary medicines framework in Northern Ireland which could halve the amount of veterinary medicines placed on the Northern Ireland market; and
• while negotiations between the EU and UK on the implementation of the Northern Ireland Protocol continue, the UK has said that it will not implement the new EU rules. 

Fertilising products>/a>

These EU documents are politically important because:

• they will apply in Northern Ireland and form part of a larger set of new fertiliser rules applicable in Northern Ireland, but not Great Britain, from 16 July 2022; and
• the policy area is subject to review in Great Britain, with responsibility devolved to the UK’s constituent nations, and so there is uncertainty around the emerging level of divergence across the UK

Supply of medicines from Great Britain to Northern Ireland

These EU documents are politically important because:

• they aim to ensure the continued long-term supply of medicines from Great Britain to Northern Ireland following difficulties encountered as a result of obligations set out in the Ireland/Northern Ireland Protocol; and
•  they contain provisions which could lead to future divergence between
  medicines available in Great Britain and Northern Ireland and provisions
  which may constrain some of Great Britain’s regulatory autonomy over rules governing medicines.

New EU Construction Products Regulation

This EU document is politically important because:

• It would make significant changes to the way the EU regulates construction products, including by introducing new EU-wide minimum safety and environmental requirements for components and materials used in the construction industry. This may have implications for the UK because EU rules in this area currently still apply in Northern Ireland under the Protocol in the Withdrawal Agreement, and goods lawfully on the market there can typically be sold freely into the rest of the UK even if they do not meet post-Brexit rules in force in Great Britain. Exports of such products to the EU, which exceeded £4 billion in 2020, are also likely to be affected.
• However, an Explanatory Memorandum submitted by the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities in May 2022 did not provide any substantive assessment of how the EU proposal might affect the UK market for construction products or, by extension, UK policy relating to issues such as building safety.
   
        

Fluorinated Greenhouse gases

This EU document is politically important because:

• it will apply in Northern Ireland, creating divergence with regulation currently applicable in Great Britain;
• the Government intends to take the Commission’s proposal into account when reviewing GB legislation in this area; and
• it is uncertain how the proposed phasedown of hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) in heat pumps aligns with climate action objectives.
  
  

 Ozone depleting substances

This EU document is politically important because:

• it will apply in Northern Ireland, creating potential divergence with regulation currently applicable in Great Britain, but also resulting in cost and administrative savings for businesses and administration in Northern Ireland;
• the Commission is proposing changes to streamline existing EU law, in a similar process to that being followed in the UK’s review of retained EU law; and
• the UK may choose to take similar measures as it is similarly keen to streamline how ozone-depleting substances are regulated.
  
  

Enhancing trade in the Euro-Mediterranean region: changes to preferential rules of origin

This EU document is legally and politically important because:

• it concerns an international agreement—the Regional Convention on pan-Euro-Mediterranean preferential rules of origin (‘the PEM Convention’)—in which the UK no longer participates following its exit from the EU, but which continues to apply in Northern Ireland under the Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland; and
• it is important to understand how the application of different rules of origin in Northern Ireland and in the rest of the UK to goods imported from third countries participating in the PEM Convention affects the terms on which these goods can access the Northern Ireland (NI) and Great Britain (GB) markets and the costs and benefits for businesses and consumers.

Technical standards: the EU Standardisation Strategy and its implications for the UK

This EU document is politically important because:

• the EU Standardisation Strategy seeks to bolster the EU’s influence over international efforts to set technical standards that underpin the use of new technologies in areas such as Artificial Intelligence, 6G and cyber-security, where the Government has also identified international standard-setting work as being a strategic objective for the UK; and
• as part of its Strategy, the European Commission has proposed new EU legislation that could affect the formal role played by the British Standards Institution (BSI) within the independent European Standardisation Organisations, even though a significant sub-set of standards produced by those bodies in the context of EU product safety policy continue to have direct legal mplications for the UK under the Northern Ireland Protocol.

Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism

This EU document is politically important because:

• the EU is likely to propose that its new Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism— once adopted—applies to Northern Ireland;
• it has implications for trade between the EU and the UK, with a potential impact on the UK that is proportionate to the relevant industrial concentration within UK regions and nations; and
• it may spark a multilateral discussion on carbon pricing and measures to address carbon leakage.

Northern Ireland Protocol: Plant Health

This EU document is politically important because:

• it creates regulatory divergence between Great Britain (GB) on the one hand and the EU and Northern Ireland (NI) on the other; and
• it increases the control requirements on exports from GB to NI and the EU, thus adding complexity to the trade of the affected plants and wood. 
   

Northern Ireland Protocol: Organic Products

This EU document is politically important because:

• it signifies substantial divergence by the EU away from the UK;
• Northern Ireland must align with the revised EU legislation; and 
• while the impact of divergence is mitigated by the EU and UK’s recognition of their mutual regulation in this area as being equivalent, a review of equivalence is foreseen by the end of 2023. 
   

Deforestation and Forest Degradation

This EU document is legally and politically important because:

• while it is likely to apply, at least in part, to Northern Ireland there is considerable uncertainty about how much of it should apply;
• separately, the UK is consulting on its own similar, but not identical, system; and
• any divergence between the EU and UK approaches could prove challenging both within the UK but also internationally given global efforts in this area.

Waste Shipments Regulation

This EU document is politically important because:

• the Government has a manifesto commitment to ban the export of plastic waste to non-OECD countries, a commitment that was recently reiterated as a benefit of Brexit;
• Northern Ireland must maintain alignment with the EU’s Waste Shipments Regulation, and so the measures set out in this legislation—including a new investigatory power for the European Commission—will apply there; and
• the proposed measures will have an impact on businesses in Great Britain that export or import waste to and from the EU. 
   

EU Single Customs Window for trade in goods (update)

This EU document is legally and politically important because:

• it would establish a ‘Single Customs Window’ (SCW) for goods entering the EU from non-EU countries like the UK. This is a new IT system to enable traders to clear certain EU border formalities more quickly and efficiently, by facilitating how their information is shared with and between customs authorities; and
• as EU customs formalities continue to apply in Northern Ireland under the Protocol to the Withdrawal Agreement, the Government may also have to implement this new system in Northern Ireland (including for use by traders sending goods there from Great Britain). In March 2022, the Treasury informed us that, because of the Government’s on-going talks with the EU on how the Protocol operates, it is currently unclear whether (and, if so, how) the SCW will apply in Northern Ireland. It also confirmed that Ministers are exploring how the UK’s own planned ‘Single Trade Window’ for border formalities might be linked to the EU’s initiative, which is of particular relevance to Northern Ireland where the two systems may overlap most widely.

The EU’s new General Product Safety Regulation (update)

This EU document is legally and politically important because:

• it seeks to amend EU product safety rules for a wide range of consumer goods, which continue to apply in Northern Ireland under the Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland. Goods made to these new EU standards that are for sale in Northern Ireland will also typically benefit from ‘unfettered access’ to the wider UK market, even if they do not meet UK product safety standards as they develop separately post-Brexit;
• the new EU General Product Safety Regulation will also affect the significant number of British businesses in the supply chain for consumer goods destined for the EU market, whose exports will need to comply with the new rules even if they do not apply directly in Great Britain; and
• in February 2022, the Minister for Small Business, Consumers and Labour Markets (Paul Scully MP) wrote to us saying that the Government has no immediate concerns about the proposed changes to the EU’s product safety rules, but that it will continue to monitor for developments in the EU legislative process closely.

Commission Work Programme: The Northern Ireland Protocol angle 

This EU document is politically important because:

• the European Commission’s 2022 Work Programme (CWP) sets out the most important actions the EU intends to take in the year ahead; and
• this year’s CWP details new EU legislative proposals that, if adopted, may apply in Northern Ireland as per the terms of the Northern Ireland Protocol to the UK/EU Withdrawal Agreement.
   

Supply of medicines from Great Britain to Northern Ireland

These EU documents are politically important because:

• they aim to ensure the continued long-term supply of medicines from Great Britain to Northern Ireland following difficulties encountered as a result of obligations set out in the Ireland/Northern Ireland Protocol; and
• they contain provisions which could lead to future divergence between medicines available in Great Britain and Northern Ireland and provisions which may constrain some of Great Britain’s regulatory autonomy over rules governing medicines. 
   

EU trade preferences for developing countries

The proposed EU Regulation is legally and politically important because:

• the changes it proposes to the EU’s scheme of tariff preferences for developing countries will apply to Northern Ireland under the Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland;
• the UK’s post-Brexit scheme of tariff preferences for developing countries is based on the EU’s current scheme;
• the Government intends to introduce a new Developing Countries Trading Scheme in 2022; and
• differences in the schemes applied in the EU and in the UK could mean that access to trade preferences and tariffs due could vary depending on whether goods are brought into Northern Ireland or into the UK mainland.

Waste Shipments Regulation

This EU document is politically important because:

• the Government has a manifesto commitment to ban the export of plastic waste, a commitment that was recently reiterated as a benefit of Brexit;
• Northern Ireland must maintain alignment with the EU’s Waste Shipments Regulation, and so the measures set out in this legislation—including a new investigatory power for the European Commission—will apply there; and
• the proposed measures will have an impact on businesses in Great Britain that export or import waste to and from the EU. 
   

EU rules on minimum VAT Rates: potential implications for the UK under the Northern Ireland Protocol

This EU document is legally and politically important because:

• it seeks to change EU rules on minimum VAT rates on goods, which remain applicable in Northern Ireland under the Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland in the Brexit Withdrawal Agreement. How the changes might affect VAT rates in Northern Ireland, and by extension the UK internal market, remains unclear, not least while the Government’s negotiations with the EU to change the operation of the Protocol are on-going.

EU Climate Change Policy 

This EU document is politically important because:

• the EU’s revised Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) will apply, in part, to Northern Ireland;
• the Government does not consider, however, that the revenue derived from auctioning allowances under the EU ETS in Northern Ireland will have to be spent on climate-related measures;
• it links to mutual commitments in the area of climate change under the UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement;
• the whole package of measures is strategically important for the UK both as holder of the Presidency of the COP26 international climate negotiations and with a view to informing the UK’s own policies; and
• the Government has identified a number of the related measures as particularly relevant to the UK, such as those concerning aviation and maritime emissions and renewable energy.
   

Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism

This EU document is politically important because:

• the EU is likely to propose that its new Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism— once adopted—applies to Northern Ireland;
• it has implications for trade between the EU and the UK, with a potential impact on the UK that is proportionate to the relevant industrial concentration within UK regions and nations; and
• it may spark a multilateral discussion on carbon pricing and measures to address carbon leakage. 
   

Livestock movements to Northern Ireland

This EU document is politically important because:

• it concerns contentious arrangements for the labelling of livestock in Northern Ireland and for the movement of livestock from Great Britain to Northern Ireland.
   

Northern Ireland Protocol: Persistent organic pollutants

This EU document is politically important because:

• it applies to Northern Ireland under the terms of the Northern Ireland Protocol, and could have implications for specific waste streams in Northern Ireland, such as the separate collection of domestic ash; and
• the measure would also create divergence between the EU/NI and GB in relation to these substances, including substances recently identified in otters in England and Wales.

EU Single Customs Window for trade in goods (update) 

This EU document is legally and politically important because:

• for goods entering the EU from non-EU countries like the UK, it would establish a ‘Single Customs Window’ to improve communication between border agencies and allow traders to clear certain customs formalities more easily. The UK may also have to implement this new arrangement in respect of goods entering Northern Ireland from Great Britain under the terms of the Northern Ireland Protocol in the Brexit Agreement; and
• having been under discussion since October 2020, the EU Member States and the European Parliament established their positions on the draft legislation in late 2021 and talks on the scope and implementation of the EU Single Customs Window are expected to conclude this year.

N/A

Enhancing trade in the Euro-Mediterranean region: changes to preferential rules of origin

This EU document is legally and politically important because:

• it concerns an international agreement—the Regional Convention on pan-Euro-Mediterranean preferential rules of origin (‘the PEM Convention’)—in which the UK participated when a member of the European Union;
• rules of origin determine whether goods qualify for preferential market access under free trade agreements;
• following the conclusion of the EU/UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement, the Government has decided that it will not seek to participate in the PEM Convention in its own right but the Convention continues to apply in Northern Ireland under the Northern Ireland Protocol; and
• it remains unclear how the application of different rules of origin in Northern Ireland and in the rest of the UK to goods imported from countries participating in the PEM Convention affects the terms on which these goods can access the NI and GB markets. 
  
  

EU trade preferences for developing countries

The proposed EU Regulation is legally and politically important because:

• the changes it proposes to the EU’s scheme of tariff preferences for developing countries will apply to Northern Ireland under the Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland;
• the UK’s post-Brexit scheme of tariff preferences for developing countries is based on the EU’s current scheme;
• the Government intends to introduce a new ‘Developing Countries Scheme’ in 2022; and
• differences in the schemes applied in the EU and in the UK could mean that access to trade preferences would differ depending on whether goods are brought into Northern Ireland or into the UK mainland. 

Northern Ireland Protocol: draft EU Energy Taxation Directive (update)

This EU document is legally and politically important because:

• it would make significant changes to both the structure and level of taxation of fuel and other energy products sold in the EU, and these new structures and rates for energy taxation could potentially also apply in Northern Ireland under the Northern Ireland Protocol in the Withdrawal Agreement; and
• the Financial Secretary to the Treasury (Rt Hon. Lucy Frazer QC MP) has replied to questions we put to her in September, indicating that the proposal could indeed result in some changes to fuel duty rates in Northern Ireland, but emphasising the Government is seeking to negotiate changes to the Protocol that would give the UK more flexibility to set duty rates in Northern Ireland outside the confines of EU law.

EU proposal for a standardised universal charger for smartphones and mobile devices

This EU document is politically important because:

• it would introduce a mandatory, universal charging solution for mobile devices such as smartphones and tablets sold within the European Union, to enable all such devices to be charged rapidly with a standard USB-C cable from any brand; and
• the new requirements may also apply to devices sold in Northern Ireland under the terms of the Northern Ireland Protocol in the Brexit Agreement, potentially triggering divergence of product standards with the rest of the UK. The Government is yet to assess whether it will mandate a similar universal charging solution under UK law. 
  
  

Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism

This EU document is politically important because:

• the EU is likely to propose that its new Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism— once adopted—applies to Northern Ireland;
• it has implications for trade between the EU and the UK, with a potential impact on the UK that is proportionate to the relevant industrial concentration within UK regions and nations; and
• it may spark a multilateral discussion on carbon pricing and measures to address carbon leakage.
  
  

EU proposals for Decisions of the UK/EU Joint Committee: update of the list of independent arbitrators and amendments to the provisions on social security coordination

These EU documents are politically important because:

• they set out the EU’s position on certain matters under the Withdrawal Agreement. This includes the appointment of a new arbitrator to the EU’s list of arbitrators who can be called upon to form a panel under the Agreement’s dispute resolution procedures (simply to replace an existing arbitrator). While the EU proposal is not in itself legally significant, the role of such arbitrators could become important if the Government were to follow through on its suggestion of dis-applying parts of the Northern Ireland Protocol in the Withdrawal Agreement using its Article 16, as this may lead the EU to formally trigger the dispute resolution process. It is also noteworthy in that respect that the UK and EU have to date failed to establish the list of eligible arbitrators under the separate Trade and Cooperation Agreement, despite having previously agreed a deadline of 30 June 2021 for doing so; and
• in addition, the EU has also proposed a number of amendments to the provisions of the Withdrawal Agreement dealing with social security coordination.
• While highly technical in nature, these changes seek to ensure the smooth functioning of the Citizens’ Rights section of the Agreement and as such are clearly important for UK and EU nationals who derive legal rights from the Withdrawal Agreement.

The EU’s new General Product Safety Regulation

• This EU document is legally and politically important because:
• it seeks to amend EU product safety rules for consumer goods which continue to apply in Northern Ireland under the Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland, with possible impact on the whole UK market for such goods because of “unfettered access” for Northern Irish goods under the Internal Market Act 2020; and
• it will also affect the significant number of British businesses exporting consumer goods to the EU, whose exports will need to comply with the new rules even if they do not apply directly in Great Britain.
  
  

Livestock movements to Northern Ireland

This EU document is politically important because:

• it concerns contentious arrangements for the labelling of livestock in Northern Ireland and for the movement of livestock from Great Britain to Northern Ireland.

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EU Climate Change Policy

This EU document is politically important because:

• the EU’s revised Emissions Trading System (EU ETS) will apply, in part, to Northern Ireland;
• the Government has queried the extent to which revenue received by the UK Government from auctioning allowances under the EU ETS in Northern Ireland will have to be spent on climate-related measures;
• it links to mutual commitments in the area of climate change under the UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement and so provides an opportunity to check with the Government how those are being discharged; and
• the whole package of measures is strategically important for the UK both in advance of its Presidency of the COP 26 international climate negotiations in Glasgow from 31 October until 12 November and with a view to informing the UK’s own policies.

Northern Ireland Protocol: Draft EU Machinery Regulation (update)

This EU document is legally and politically important because:

• it could significantly alter the EU’s safety requirements for a range of machinery products. These could become law in Northern Ireland under the Northern Ireland Protocol between the UK and the EU, with potential consequences for the market for these products in Great Britain under the Internal Market Act; and
• in response to our questions, the Government has now told us that is still considering the potential implications of the Regulation for the UK, in particular in the context of its current efforts to renegotiate the Northern Ireland Protocol. 
  
  

Protection of critical infrastructure

This proposed EU Directive is legally and politically important because:

• it seeks to ensure that the operators of critical national infrastructure in 10 sectors (energy, transport, banking, financial market infrastructure, health, drinking water, waste water, digital infrastructure, public administration, and space) have robust plans to address natural and man-made risks which might significantly disrupt the provision of essential services;
• it may affect the operation of the single wholesale electricity market in Ireland and Northern Ireland and the laws applicable in Northern Ireland under the Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland (part of the UK/EU Withdrawal Agreement);
•  it may also affect UK national critical infrastructure or operators where there are strong links to the EU or other interdependencies, such as highly connected supply chains; and
• it raises broader questions about the Government’s approach to regulatory alignment and divergence after Brexit. 
  
  

Northern Ireland Protocol: Draft EU Energy Taxation Directive

This EU document is legally and politically important because:

• it would make significant changes to both the structure and level of taxation of energy products sold in the EU, notably introducing minimum rates of duty for fuels linked to their environmental performance; and
• these new structures and rates for energy taxation could potentially also apply in Northern Ireland under the Northern Ireland Protocol in the Withdrawal Agreement, as well as to Gibraltar under that territory’s putative new trade arrangement with the EU (which is currently being negotiated).

N/A

Fisheries Control

This EU document is politically important because:

• it will lead to changes that will need to be applied by UK vessels fishing in EU waters;
• the EU proposes a digital database of catch certificates relevant to the import and export of fishery products, including between Great Britain and Northern Ireland; and
• the UK will conduct its own review of fisheries control, during which the impact on the UK industry of the new EU measures will be taken into account. 
  
  

Northern Ireland Protocol: Feeding animal protein to animals

This EU document is politically important because:

• it concerns an EU proposal to revoke EU laws—introduced in the light of the BSE crisis—on the feeding of some animal proteins to non-ruminant animals, including pigs and chickens;
• the change would apply directly in Northern Ireland, but not in Great Britain; and
• the UK, Scottish and Welsh Administrations have not yet decided whether England, Scotland and Wales respectively should align with the change.

Protection of critical infrastructure 

This proposed EU Directive is legally and politically important because:

• it seeks to ensure that the operators of critical national infrastructure in 10 sectors (energy, transport, banking, financial market infrastructure, health, drinking water, waste water, digital infrastructure, public administration, and space) have robust plans to address natural and man-made risks which might significantly disrupt the provision of essential services;
• it may affect the operation of the single wholesale electricity market in Ireland and Northern Ireland and the laws applicable in Northern Ireland under the Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland (part of the UK/EU Withdrawal Agreement);
• it may also affect UK national critical infrastructure or operators where there are strong links to the EU or other interdependencies, such as highly connected supply chains; and
• it raises broader questions about the Government’s approach to regulatory alignment and divergence after Brexit. 
  
  

Gender Equality: Commission Strategy and Stocktaking

These EU documents are politically important because:

• they outline the EU’s approach to gender equality over the next five years;
• they serve as an important marker for the UK Government’s own plans as regards potential voluntary alignment with EU standards; and
• they raise the potential of there being further differences between the gender equality regime in Northern Ireland and that in Great Britain as a result of Northern Ireland Protocol obligations.

New EU health and safety requirements for machinery (EU Machinery Regulation)

This EU document is legally and politically important because:

• it could significantly alter the way the EU applies safety requirements to a range of machinery products, also affecting UK exports to the EU. In addition, the new safety standards could become law in Northern Ireland under the Brexit Protocol, and make machinery produced to EU standards legal for sale in Great Britain under the Internal Market Act (even if British safety standards diverge in the future).  
  
  

The EU’s Artificial Intelligence Act: possible implications for the UK

This EU document is legally and politically important because:

• it would establish a new set of risk-based legal standards for certain Artificial Intelligence (AI) applications put on the market within the EU. The Government has said it is likely to have implications for the UK, not least because businesses exporting AI software to the EU will need to meet the new requirements and the EU is also seeking to mould international standards after its chosen regulatory approach; and
• in addition, it is possible that any new EU rules relating to the use of AI as safety components in physical devices could apply in Northern Ireland under the Protocol in the Withdrawal Agreement, with implications for the entire UK market for such goods because of the mutual recognition principle under the Internal Market Act 2020. 
  
  

Northern Ireland Protocol: Feeding animal protein to animals

This EU document is politically important because:

• it concerns an EU proposal to revoke EU laws—introduced in the light of the BSE crisis—on the feeding of some animal proteins to non-ruminant animals, including pigs and chickens;
• the change would apply directly in Northern Ireland, but not in Great Britain, and so could affect trade in non-ruminant animals from Northern Ireland to Great Britain, subject to the decisions of each of the Devolved Administrations; and
• the UK, Scottish and Welsh Administrations have not yet decided whether England, Scotland and Wales respectively should align with the change. 
  
  

Control of exports on ‘dual-use’ item

This EU document is politically important because:

• it raises questions regarding the Government’s plans for the operation of the UK’s ‘dual-use’ export regime from 1 January 2021; and
• the current iteration of the EU’s Dual-Use Regulation — Council Regulation (EC) No 428/2009 — is listed in Annex 2 of the Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland to the UK/EU Withdrawal Agreement and applies in respect of Northern Ireland. The proposal under scrutiny — a major update of this Regulation — will, post-adoption, replace Council Regulation (EC) No 428/2009 and apply in Northern Ireland.

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Cybersecurity: EU Strategy and revised Network and Information Systems Directive

These EU documents are politically important because:

• the Government acknowledges that the proposed Network and Information Systems Directive has the potential to invoke Article 13(4) of the Northern Ireland Protocol;8 and
• as the Communication refers to a cybersecurity framework that the UK has maintained after EU Exit, it holds domestic relevance for the Government as it develops the UK’s own post-Brexit national cybersecurity strategy. 
  
  

EU-UK Relations: Equivalence of various seeds and plants

These EU documents are politically important because:

• the EU remains reluctant to grant equivalence to a number of plant products produced in the UK, including seed potatoes and vegetable seed, with a consequent impact on the export of those products from Great Britain to the EU and Northern Ireland. 
  
  

The EU’s Smart Mobility Strategy

This EU document is politically important because:

• it sets-out the legislative and policy initiatives that the EU intends to introduce in the field of transport over the next four years;
• these initiatives are geared towards addressing the challenges—and making the most of the opportunities created by—climate change, and the digitisation of transport systems; and
• the legislative and policy proposal trailed in the Strategy may have implications for Northern Ireland under the Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland Protocol to the UK/EU Withdrawal Agreement, and will also be of interest to UK-based stakeholders as important reference points for the Government’s own plans in related areas.

Protection of critical infrastructure 

This proposed Directive is legally and politically important because:

• it seeks to ensure that the operators of critical national infrastructure in 10 sectors (energy, transport, banking, financial market infrastructure, health, drinking water, waste water, digital infrastructure, public administration, and space) have robust plans to address natural and man-made risks which might significantly disrupt the provision of essential services;
• it may affect the operation of the single wholesale electricity market in Ireland and Northern Ireland and the laws applicable in Northern Ireland under the Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland to the UK/EU Withdrawal Agreement;
• it may also affect UK national critical infrastructure or operators where there are strong links to the EU or other interdependencies, such as highly connected supply chains; and
• it raises broader questions about the Government’s approach to regulatory alignment and divergence after Brexit. 
  
  

EU Pharmaceutical Strategy

This EU document is politically important because:

• it suggests changes to EU pharmaceutical legislation with which Northern Ireland must remain aligned;
• this is an area of regulation where the EU and UK agreed to cooperate under the terms of the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement;
• any EU changes to incentives for the production of medicines could have implications for the competitiveness of the UK pharmaceutical industry if the UK did not adopt a similar approach;
• research is an important element of the Strategy and is an area where the UK has negotiated continuing participation in an EU programme; and
• it relates indirectly to discussions on a temporary intellectual property waiver to ensure widespread global access to medical products for the prevention, containment and treatment of Covid-19, including vaccines.

Northern Ireland Protocol: EU import licensing scheme for cultural goods

This EU document is politically important because:

• it establishes new customs formalities under EU law to identify cultural goods, like archaeological artefacts and older works of art, at risk of being smuggled into the EU from non-EU countries (including the UK). The Regulation will fully take effect from 2025; and
• these new customs formalities, because of the Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland in the Withdrawal Agreement, will not only apply in due course to works of art and antiquities traded from Great Britain into the EU, but also those entering Northern Ireland from the rest of the UK.

Northern Ireland Protocol: Illegal timber arrangements

These EU documents are legally and politically important because:

• they cover an area with which Northern Ireland must maintain regulatory alignment after the end of the post-Brexit Transition Period, but the UK and EU have disagreed on how the legality of timber imports into Northern Ireland from certain countries should be guaranteed. 
  
  

Northern Ireland Protocol: Batteries Regulation and Electric Vehicles

This EU document is politically important because:

• it will apply in Northern Ireland under the terms of the Northern Ireland Protocol;
• it has implications for UK-wide batteries and electric vehicle policy as legislative divergence between Great Britain and Northern Ireland could affect the UK internal market; and
• it is a potentially significant step towards attracting investment in the EU’s electric vehicle battery industry, which is important because—under the terms of the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement—rules of origin requirements mean in practice that batteries for electric vehicles will need to be sourced from the EU or UK from 2027 in order to benefit from tariff-free trade between the EU and UK.

EU-UK Relations: Equivalence of various seeds and plants 

These EU documents are politically important because:

• the EU remains reluctant to grant equivalence to a number of plant products produced in the UK, including seed potatoes and vegetable seed, with a consequent impact on the export of those products from Great Britain to the EU and Northern Ireland. 
  
  

EU-UK Health Security Cooperation

These EU documents are politically important because:

• they are relevant to EU-UK cooperation on serious cross-border health threats, linking to the health security provisions in the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement; and
• they provide for the potential acceleration of the placing of medicinal products and medical devices on the Northern Irish market. 
  
  

EU Pharmaceutical Strategy

This EU document is politically important because:

• it suggests changes to EU pharmaceutical legislation with which Northern Ireland must remain aligned;
• this is an area of regulation where the EU and UK agreed to cooperate under the terms of the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement;
• any EU changes to incentives for the production of medicines could have implications for the competitiveness of the UK pharmaceutical industry if the UK did not adopt a similar approach; and
• research is an important element of the Strategy and is an area where the UK has negotiated continuing participation in an EU programme. 
  
  

Northern Ireland Protocol: application of EU preferential rules of origin

This Commission Implementing Regulation is legally and politically important

because:

• it applies to Northern Ireland under the Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland;
• it seeks to clarify whether goods imported into Northern Ireland qualify for a preferential (lower) EU tariff under the EU’s trading arrangements with third countries or the (higher) EU Most Favoured Nation (MFN) tariff;
• it must be read alongside a Decision taken by the Withdrawal Agreement Joint Committee in December 2020 setting out the criteria for determining which goods brought into Northern Ireland are to be considered “at risk” of entering the EU Single Market and subject to EU rather than UK customs duties/tariffs; and
• it highlights the complexity of the rules applicable to goods brought into Northern Ireland and the difficulties traders are likely to face in interpreting and applying them in practice.

N/A

Cybersecurity: EU Strategy and revised Network and Information Systems Directive

These EU documents are politically important because:

• the Government acknowledges that the final Network and Information Systems Directive has the potential to be raised with the UK by the EU under Article 13(4) of the Northern Ireland Protocol (which covers planned or adopted EU law that falls within the scope of the Protocol but which neither amend nor replace an EU act listed in the Annexes); and
• as the Communication refers to a cybersecurity framework that the UK has maintained after EU Exit, it holds domestic relevance for the Government as it develops the UK’s post-Brexit cybersecurity strategy. 
  
  

Northern Ireland Protocol: Market access for goods from African, Caribbean and Pacific  (ACP) countries

This EU document is legally and politically important because:

• it concerns the EU’s Market Access Regulation which sets out the arrangements for goods originating in some African, Caribbean and Pacific countries to access the EU market;
• the Market Access Regulation continues to apply in Northern Ireland under Article 5 of the Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland;
• the Withdrawal Agreement Joint Committee has established criteria for determining whether goods brought into Northern Ireland are “at risk” of entering the EU market and must be charged the applicable EU tariff; and
• goods that are subject to EU safeguard measures (such as a higher tariff or quota) under the Market Access Regulation are likely to be considered “at risk” and charged the higher EU tariff if they enter the UK via the Northern Ireland.

The EU Trade Enforcement Regulation: Brexit implications 

This EU Regulation is legally and politically important because:

• it has important implications for the UK as a third country which now has its own bilateral trade agreement with the EU and participates as a member in its own right in the WTO;
• the Regulation authorises the EU to take unilateral action (countermeasures) such as increased customs duties or quotas on goods, or restrictions on trade in services, if a trade partner obstructs the resolution of a trade dispute within the WTO or under a trade agreement with the EU; and
• the Regulation continues to apply in Northern Ireland under the Northern Ireland Protocol—as most (if not all) goods entering Northern Ireland which are subject to EU countermeasures will be considered “at risk” of onward movement to the EU, they will also be subject to the EU’s retaliatory tariffs.
  
  

WTO Airbus-Boeing dispute: application of EU retaliatory measures

This Commission Implementing Regulation is legally and politically important because:

• it is relevant to the disentangling of EU and UK interests and representation in the World Trade Organisation (WTO) from 1 January 2021;
• it concerns the application of additional (retaliatory) EU tariffs on a range of US goods, as authorised by the WTO’s Dispute Settlement Body last October in the long-running EU/US disputes on subsidies for the production of Airbus and Boeing aircraft;
• while the Government decided to suspend the application of these tariffs in the UK with effect from 1 January 2021, they continue to apply in Northern Ireland under the Northern Ireland Protocol and Withdrawal Agreement Joint Committee Decision determining which goods entering Northern Ireland are “at risk” of onward movement to the EU and subject to EU tariffs; and
• recent developments indicate that a settlement of the Airbus and Boeing disputes may be within grasp, following a decision by the EU and the US to suspend all retaliatory tariffs for a temporary four-month period. 
  
  

Northern Ireland Protocol: implementation powers of the European Commission under the EU VAT Directive

This EU document is legally and politically important because:

• it would give the European Commission the power to introduce legally-binding definitions for certain tax-related terms and concepts under the EU VAT Directive without the need for the approval of all 27 EU Member States, which could also have implications for the UK under the Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland.

EU Intellectual Property Action Plan 

This EU document is politically important because:

• it sets out the European Commission’s agenda for reform of Intellectual Property law in the EU, which—as a large market for the export of UK goods and services—may impact on the protection of UK right holders within the EU in the future; and
• in its Action Plan, the Commission also refers to an upcoming revision of the EU’s schemes for protected geographical indications (GI) for food and drink products, which may affect Northern Ireland directly because it remains bound by EU law in that area under the Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland.
  
  

EU Environment Action Programme

This EU document is politically important because:

• the framework set out could lead to legislative changes with which Northern Ireland must align, including in areas subject to UK-wide common frameworks; and
• the EU and UK agreed in the Trade and Cooperation Agreement that either Party could adopt “rebalancing measures” if material impacts on trade or investment between the Parties arise as a result of significant divergences between them in a number of areas, including environmental policy. It is therefore important to maintain awareness of the overall direction of the EU policy in this area. 
  
  

The EU’s Smart Mobility Strategy

This EU document is politically important because:

• it sets out the legislative and policy initiatives that the EU intends to introduce in the field of transport over the next four years;
• these initiatives are geared towards addressing the challenges—and making the most of the opportunities created by–climate change, and the digitisation of transport systems; and
• the legislative and policy proposal trailed in the Strategy may have implications for Northern Ireland under the Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland to the UK/EU Withdrawal Agreement, and will also be of interest to UK-based stakeholders as important reference points for the Government’s own plans in related areas.

Chemicals Strategy

This EU document is legally and politically important because:

• policy changes suggested by the Commission are likely to affect Northern Ireland under the terms of Ireland/Northern Ireland Protocol and may have consequent relevance for Great Britain;
• in their agreement on the future relationship, the UK and EU agreed on a framework for their respective regulation of chemicals, involving cooperation with each other and adherence to international standards; and
• the EU and UK also agreed to maintain at least the same environmental (including chemicals) levels of protection in place at the end of the Transition Period (the principle of “non-regression”) and agreed that either Party could adopt “rebalancing” measures in the event that material impacts on trade or
• investment between the Parties are arising as a result of significant divergences in environmental policies.
  
  

Northern Ireland Protocol: application of EU preferential rules of origin

This Commission Implementing Regulation is legally and politically important because:

• it applies to Northern Ireland under the Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland;
• it seeks to clarify whether goods imported into Northern Ireland qualify for a preferential (lower) EU tariff under the EU’s trading arrangements with third countries or the (higher) EU Most Favoured Nation (MFN) tariff;
• it must be read alongside a Decision taken by the Withdrawal Agreement Joint Committee in December 2020 setting out the criteria for determining which goods brought into Northern Ireland are to be considered “at risk” of entering the EU Single Market and subject to EU rather than UK customs duties/tariffs; and
• it highlights the complexity of the rules applicable to goods brought into Northern Ireland and the difficulties traders are likely to face in interpreting and applying them in practice.

N/A

Northern Ireland Protocol: application of tariff rate quotas

The proposed Regulation is legally and politically important because:

• it determines how EU tariff rate quotas (TRQs) and other import quotas operate under the Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland from 1 January 2021; and
• it has already given rise to concerns that importers of certain steel products in Northern Ireland may face a new 25% tariff.

Batteries Regulation and Electric Vehicles

This EU document is politically important   because:  

• it will apply in Northern Ireland under the terms of the Ireland/Northern Ireland Protocol annexed to the Withdrawal Agreement
• it has implications for UK-wide batteries and electric vehicle policy given the Government’s  desire to avoid any legislative divergence from Northern Ireland which could have a negative effect on the UK internal market; and  
• it is a potentially significant step towards attracting investment in the EU’s electric vehicle battery industry, which is important because—under the terms of  the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement—rules of origin requirements mean in practice that batteries for electric vehicles will need to be  sourced from the EU or UK from 2027 in order to benefit from tariff-free  trade between the EU and UK.

Northern Ireland Protocol: Joint Consultative Working Group

This EU document is politically important because:

• it concerns how the EU will inform the UK about planned EU laws affecting Northern Ireland in the future and how the EU and UK will discuss the implementation of EU laws within the scope of the Ireland/Northern Ireland   Protocol; and
• the Government commits to engaging with Parliament and the Northern Ireland Executive and Parliament on future arrangements for governance of the Withdrawal Agreement and the Protocol
  
  

Northern Ireland Protocol: continued application of EU firearms laws

This EU document is politically important because:

• it concerns an EU law—the Firearms Directive—which will continue to apply in   Northern Ireland at the end of the post-exit transition period under the Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland; and
• it raises questions about regulatory alignment or divergence in the laws   applicable in Northern Ireland and Great Britain from 1 January 2021 and the Government’s approach to managing the flow of illicit goods to, from and through Northern Ireland (and any other unintended consequences) resulting   from the operation of the Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland.
   

Northern Ireland Protocol: application of tariff rate quotas and other import quotas

The proposed Regulation is legally and politically important because:

• it is intended to prepare for the end of the post-exit transition period and concerns the implementation of EU customs laws in Northern Ireland under the Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland.