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| - The UK government announced Wednesday it would unilaterally extend by six months a post-Brexit grace period deferring checks on agri-foods entering Northern Ireland from mainland Britain. Announcing the change to the new trading arrangements with the European Union, Northern Ireland Secretary Brandon Lewis said London was taking "several temporary operational steps to avoid disruptive cliff edges". "These recognise that appropriate time must be provided for businesses to implement new requirements, and support the effective flow of goods between Great Britain and Northern Ireland," he said in a written parliamentary statement. Lewis added the current grace period for supermarkets and their suppliers operating in the British province would continue until October 1 instead of ending by April. The new certification requirements on agri-foods will then be introduced in phases alongside the roll out of a "digital assistance scheme", he said. Since the Brexit transition period ended on January 1, a special set of arrangements has governed trade in Northern Ireland, which is home to 1.9 million people and now has the UK's only land border with the EU. Under a protocol within the divorce deal agreed between Brussels and London, Northern Ireland has effectively stayed in the EU customs union and single market for goods, with checks on freight arriving from mainland Britain. Although the grace period agreed as part of the pact deferred agri-food enforcement, supermarkets are among those struggling to adapt to the new regime. It has triggered widespread confusion among businesses, with some UK suppliers refusing to ship goods across the Irish Sea, leading to some bare shelves in Northern Irish supermarkets and customers there unable to order items online. The difficult transition has also had political ramifications, with pro-UK unionists warning of tensions within their communities over the protocol. Northern Ireland's agriculture minister said last week that construction of permanent facilities to check goods arriving from Britain have been halted over concerns about the new rules. British and EU leaders have vowed to work to uphold the province's hard-won peace and stability, with discussions about arrangements ongoing through a joint committee. Prime Minister Boris Johnson told lawmakers at weekly parliamentary questioning Wednesday that Northern Ireland's place within the UK internal market was "rock solid and guaranteed". "We are making sure that we underscore that with some temporary operational easings in order to protect the market in some areas, such as food supplies, pending further discussions with the EU," he said. Johnson added the government would "leave nothing off the table in order to ensure that we get this right." However, Irish republican party Sinn Fein, criticised the unilateral move. "Today's announcement by Brandon Lewis is not in the spirit of the joint action which is clearly required to build trust and confidence in the implementation of the protocol," its lawmaker Chris Hazzard said. jj/phz/rl
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