Ongoing threats to staff at Northern Irish ports, including Belfast, Warrenpoint and Larne, have seen sanitary and phytosanitary (SPS) checks on live animals and foodstuffs stopped for the protection of the officials.
[s2If is_user_logged_in()]In addition, the European Union (EU) has stood down its staff on the Southern Irish side of the border as a result, with the United Kingdom (UK) press reporting that the EU and the Mid and East Antrim Council, which withdrew staff from Brexit inspection duties on Monday 1 February, have condemned those making the threats.
Graffiti in loyalist areas, opposed to the border in the Irish, between Britain and Northern Ireland, has been seen. Graffiti was a major method of communication by paramilitaries of both loyalist and republican persuasion during the conflict on the island of Ireland, which ended in 1998 with the Good Friday Agreement.
The border between the UK and Northern Ireland was agreed to following the Brexit negotiations between the UK and the EU concluded in December 2020, the agreement saw Northern Ireland remain in the single market for goods. The border is vehemently opposed by loyalists, who want to remain part of the UK. However, the BBC reports that there are “no indications that loyalist paramilitaries are involved.”
Logistics UK manager Seamus Leheny said it is unclear whether the threat is official, that is from a paramilitary group, or if it comes from a single person acting alone.
Border Control Posts are operated by Northern Ireland’s Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (Daera), led by official vets, and Logistics UK has written to Daera for clarification and an update, but there has been no response as yet, said Leheny.
“Things are moving [at the ports],” he added, “But there are no controls in place, it’s a short-term solution, but the EU will not allow this to continue for much longer.”
Northern Irish police are looking into the threats, which are seen as credible, and are advising port staff and employers on working arrangements.[/s2If]
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