Comrade Corbyn has produced yet another leaked 'confidential' document that he claims proves that there will be checks between Northern Ireland and Great Britain. But there are a number of things wrong with what Corbyn is claiming, namely:
1. The document he held up is clearly 'landscape' in its orientation, something that I know as a former civil servant of almost 20 years standing, NO official working government document, whether for internal or external use/publication, is ever produced in. Of course, this could be a printout of an overhead projection document, but then...
2. The document appears to be nothing more than yet another pro-Remain civil service interpretation of what things will actually mean (in this case in relation to the Northern Ireland Protocol), the findings of which the government has strongly denied, and which have NOT been supported by the EU.
3. When it comes to the Revised Northern Ireland Protocol (copy attached), the only references to 'checks' are in relation to, and I quote, “veterinary checks on products entering the Community from third countries”, which refers to checks on any such products entering the EU via the UK as a “third country”.
As to the specific mention of tariffs in Johnson's overall deal, these are clearly outlined in the deal itself but, again, these will only be applicable where necessary on goods entering the EU from the UK as a “third country” which, if unacceptable, questions why Parliament approved the EU (Withdrawal Agreement) Bill at 2nd Reading.
So, once again, Corbyn is deliberately scaremongering!
