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WORLD NEWS Thursday 12 January 2023

U.K., EU inch closer to deal over

N. Ireland-Brexit trade spat

By JILL LAWLESS Associated
Press
LONDON (AP) — Britain’s
foreign minister met politi-
cians and businesspeople
in Belfast bearing good
news Wednesday: The U.K.
and the European Union
are inching closer to set-
tling a post-Brexit trade
dispute that brought eco-
nomic headaches and
political turmoil to Northern
Ireland.
Foreign Secretary James
Cleverly traveled to Bel-
fast two days after Britain
and the EU struck a data-
sharing agreement that will
give the EU access to real-
time information about
goods moving to Northern
Ireland from the rest of the
U.K. Britain’s Foreign Secretary James Cleverly attends a press conference after the first UK-Germany
The two sides said the Strategic Dialogue meeting, which will agree cooperation on joint priorities, at Lancaster House,
agreement is “a critical in London, Thursday, Jan. 5, 2023. Associated Press
prerequisite to building
trust and providing assur- said officials from the two deal but said the talks had Ireland, Northern Ireland
ance” elements that have sides would “work rapidly taken an “important step is the only part of the U.K.
been in short supply since to scope the potential for forward.” that shares a border with
Britain withdrew from the solutions in different areas Cleverly and Northern an EU member nation. Brit-
EU in 2020 and provided on the basis of this renewed Ireland Secretary Chris ish unionist politicians there
“a new basis for EU-U.K. dis- understanding.” Heaton-Harris nonetheless are fiercely opposed to
cussions.” The British government de- faced a tough audience. post-Brexit trading arrange-
Cleverly and chief EU ne- nied the two sides were in As part of the island that ments known as the North-
gotiator Maroš Šefčovič the home stretch toward a includes the Republic of ern Ireland Protocol.q

Dutch government backtracks on migrant family reunions

THE HAGUE, Netherlands in the high numbers of mi- in unsanitary conditions a team to tend to the mi-
(AP) — The Dutch govern- grants arriving in the Neth- outside the country’s main grants, the first time the
ment on Wednesday back- erlands that led to a hous- migrant reception center agency had deployed in
tracked on restrictions that ing crisis and overcrowding in the northern village of the Netherlands. In an at-
it placed last year on family at asylum-seeker centers. Ter Apel. The conditions tempt to ease the over-
members joining asylum- The problems came to a at the camp were so bad crowding, the government
seekers who are granted head in the summer when that the Dutch branch of in late August announced
residency in the Nether- hundreds of people were humanitarian group Doc- measures including a move
lands, after courts ruled the forced to sleep outdoors tors Without Borders sent to temporarily rein in family
move was unlawful. reunions until migrants are
State Secretary for Justice permanently housed, pro-
and Security Eric van der vide more housing for peo-
Burg said in a letter to par- ple whose asylum requests
liament that he expects are honored and process
other courts to follow suit and repatriate people
“as a result of which the quicker from countries that
useful effect of the mea- are considered safe.
sure is temporarily absent.” But a number of courts
Van der Burg said he is have since ruled that such
temporarily suspending the family reunions can go
family reunion restrictions ahead.
pending a definitive ruling The Dutch council for Refu-
by a Dutch administrative gees has been highly criti-
court. The justice ministry cal of the policy, calling for
introduced the restrictions Hundreds of migrants who seek shelter prepared to spend the it to be scrapped and la-
night outside an overcrowded asylum seekers center in Ter
last year as part of a raft of Apel, northern Netherlands, Thursday, Aug. 25, 2022. beling it “politics at its most
measures aimed at reining Associated Press ugly.”q