Brexit news – live: UK fishermen halting exports to EU over new bureaucracy as Leave.eu moves to Ireland

Sadiq Khan has declared a “major incident” in London, as health and emergency services in the capital struggle to cope with a spike in coronavirus cases. 

The London mayor described the situation as “critical, with the spread of the virus out of control”. Currently, one in 30 Londoners has the disease. 

Mr Khan said that hospital beds in the city would run out within the next fortnight, unless the transmission of the virus dropped off significantly. 

Our political editor Andrew Woodcock has the details: 

Peers who tried to block Brexit have been accused of “lacking the imagination to see life beyond Brussels”.

Baroness Fox of Buckley said such peers also shared with US president Donald Trump a “refusal to give losers’ consent”, and warned voters may look at “unelected lawmakers closer to home” following the break with the EU.

The former Brexit Party MEP voted for the UK-EU future arrangements deal “reluctantly” as she would have preferred a “clean break”, but praised the government for delivering on sovereignty issues.

The non-affiliated peer told the Lords: “While many in this place sneeringly traduce sovereignty as xenophobic nationalism, only embraced by knuckle-dragging gammon, it is historically and now the only basis for democratic accountability.

“The demos voted to remove the unelected legislature in Brussels unanswerable to UK voters. Now that is the reality, they may look at unelected lawmakers closer to home. Good.

“Good also that now government has nowhere to hide and will need to look the electorate in the eye and own each and every decision they make, including the egregious parts of this agreement.

“Voters matter. Listening to the hours of contributions last week – I was culled from speaking – I noted a rather self-congratulatory, back-slapping tone from the government benches. It rang rather hollow.

“In truth it was the perseverance and steely courage of millions of voters who used the ballot box time and time again to use electoral vehicles, such as the pivotal Brexit Party, to pile on the pressure, and it was that which forced the Conservative Party to finally honour the referendum.

“So, let’s acknowledge it’s the voters who got Brexit done and against all the odds, and against the machinations deployed by the highest echelons of the technocratic establishment.

“And against many in this place who really did believe they had the right to overturn 17.4 million votes and shared with Donald Trump a refusal to give losers’ consent, who even now today lack the imagination to see life beyond Brussels or Erasmus or to see Brexit beyond the narrow prism of GDP.”

Liberal Democrat Lord Shipley said he “disagreed profoundly” with much of Lady Fox’s speech.

Irish customs authorities have temporarily relaxed regulations around goods moving from Great Britain, as traders face backlogs due to border controls and paperwork.

Revenue Commissioners made the decision to lift some customs rules in response to delays and trucks being refused entry on to ferries.

Exporters shipping goods to Ireland have to complete post-Brexit paperwork, which is causing administrative pressure for companies.

Revenue officials issued a general code for hauliers to use to overcome administrative difficulties and allow the movement of goods to ports.

In a statement, Revenue said it recognises some businesses are experiencing difficulties in lodging their safety and security ENS (entry summary) declaration for the movement of goods.

“In response, Revenue is implementing a temporary easement to alleviate these current difficulties,” it said.

“We expect trade and business with genuine difficulties that are impeding their ability to complete the ENS process to engage with Revenue in a co-operative endeavour to overcome their difficulties.

“A failure to engage may result in this temporary easement being withdrawn, so early engagement with Revenue is strongly encouraged.”

Universities and colleges in Scotland have been told to move online until at least the end of February, amid the coronavirus pandemic, Zoe Tidman reports.

Nicola Sturgeon said students should not travel back to their term-time accomodation.

A united Ireland could emerge within the next 25 years given the “disaster” created by Boris Johnson’s Brexit deal, a former cabinet minister has said.

Lord Blunkett said the European single market “effectively continues” in Northern Ireland under the terms of the agreement reached between the UK and the EU, with a border in the Irish Sea.

This creates “contradictions” in Northern Ireland’s relationship with the EU and the rest of Great Britain, said Lord Blunkett as he warned this bodes “extremely ill” for the future.

“I believe that this deal actually accelerates the possibility within the next 25 years of a united island of Ireland,” he said.

Seafood Scotland released a statement yesterday on what they called the “perfect storm” of Brexit disruption.

“Weakened by Covid-19, and the closure of the French border before Christmas, the end of the Brexit transition period has unleashed layer upon layer of administrative problems, resulting in queues, border refusals and utter confusion,” the chief executive for the Scottish seafood industry’s trade body said.

Find the full comments here:

Nicola Sturgeon has said exporters are already “paying a high cost for Brexit”, and this is a “particular worry” for Scotland’s seafood sector.

Fishermen are halting exports to Europe because new border bureaucracy, as Jon Stone reports: 

Shadow business spokesperson Lord Bassam of Brighton said he fears the government’s “incompetence” will hamper the UK’s ability to take advantage of the EU trade deal.

The Labour peer told the chamber: “This is a thin deal and its flaws will be exposed over time and will need fixing for the future. Labour will guard against any attempts to water down working and environmental protections.

“We accept we will inherit this deal after the next election, but we intend to build from it as a means of promoting British interests.”

Lord Bassam continued: “Like my party I am a pragmatist. It was complicated being a member of the EU, it will be a complex world outside it.

“The prime minister’s desire for the UK to be world-beating, to go where others fear to tread in the world of trade might be laudable as an ambition.

“My fear and that of our party is that the level of incompetence displayed by the government will be writ large and hamper our ability to take best advantage of even this thin deal.”

Cabinet Office minister Lord True said the UK’s trade deal with the EU will “protect high-value jobs” and provide certainty for businesses.

Opening a debate on the agreement, Lord True told peers: “From now on, our laws will be determined by our elected politicians and MPs will be accountable to the voters who send them to Parliament to legislate on their behalf.

“The Canada-style agreement takes back control of our laws, borders, trade, money and waters, ends any role for the European Court and protects the Belfast Good Friday Agreement.

“It provides certainty for business, from service providers to our leading world manufacturers – including our car industry – safeguarding highly skilled jobs and investment across our country.”

Lord True continued: “We believe the agreement will help unlock investment and protect high-value jobs right across the United Kingdom from financial services through to car manufacturing.

“The UK can now regulate in a way that suits the UK economy and UK businesses, doing things in a more innovative and effective way without being bound by EU rules. We will now take full advantage of the remarkable opportunities available to us as an independent trading nation, striking trade deals with other partners around the world.”

The BBC received 500 complaints over a tribute to the Black Lives Matter movement during the New Years Eve fireworks in London, Bethany Dawson reports.

The fireworks show, organised by City Hall and broadcast live on BBC One, featured a number of drones creating images of key themes and people of 2020. One of of the images depicted clenched fists synonymous with the Black Lives Matter movement.