Labour accuses PM of being ‘missing in action’ amid Brexit border issues
Shadow foreign secretary Lisa Nandy has accused Boris Johnson of being “missing in action” on the issue of border controls in Northern Ireland.
The Labour minister told Sky News the government must sort out the border in the Irish Sea which is “causing absolute havoc” and warned ministers they have a responsibility to ensure any kind of checks or disruption are minimised.
Her comments came as the UK’s Brexit minister warned Brussels that time is “starting to run out” to fix the problems facing Northern Ireland after Brexit.
Lisa Nandy also urged Mr Johnson to do more to resolve the issue as quickly as possible
On Sunday, Lord Frost said the UK government had “underestimated” the impact that the Northern Ireland protocol – part of the treaty which enabled the UK to leave the EU – would have.
In an article for the Financial Times before his upcoming meeting with European Commission vice-president Maros Sefcovic in London, Lord Frost – who was the PM’s chief negotiator during the negotiations with the EU, admitted ensuring the protocol worked had led to “political turbulence”.
“We underestimated the effect of the protocol on goods movements to Northern Ireland, with some suppliers in Great Britain simply not sending their products because of the time-consuming paperwork required,” Lord Frost said.
He added: “The EU needs a new playbook for dealing with neighbours, one that involves pragmatic solutions between friends, not the imposition of one side’s rules on the other and legal purism.
“But time is starting to run out. We need to see progress soon. I hope we can this week.”
Speaking to Sky News on Monday, Solicitor General Lucy Frazer also acknowledged the trade complexities surrounding Brexit and Northern Ireland are “more difficult than we anticipated”.
Brexit minister Lord Frost said the UK Government had ‘underestimated’ the impact that the Northern Ireland protocol would have
“It is very difficult on the ground in terms of trade. It is really important that we sort it and Lord Frost is doing just that.
“As it has panned out, on the ground it is more difficult than we anticipated and we do need to sort out that trade arrangement,” she said.
But over the weekend, new Democratic Unionist Party leader Edwin Poots said: “The Northern Ireland Protocol is bad for business in Northern Ireland and it is bad for every one of our citizens.”
He urged those “who want to make Northern Ireland work” to “speak with one voice against the absurd barriers placed on trade”.
Labour’s Ms Nandy also urged Mr Johnson to do more to resolve the issue as quickly as possible.
She told Sky News: “The prime minister made promises to the people of Northern Ireland that haven’t been kept.
Edwin Poots said Northern Ireland can only ‘work’ if ‘absurd barriers placed on trade’ are removed
“I think the best way to resolve this is through decent relationships, investing in those relationships and through pragmatism.
“We need to make sure we minimise any kind of border checks or disruption, and we can do that with good will on both sides.
“But there’s a feeling at the moment that the government is missing in action on this, particularly the prime minister.
“Boris Johnson has created this problem and yet he’s nowhere to be seen, I think there’s a real feeling of dismay about that, but he could turn that around.”
Meanwhile, former Brexit secretary David Davis said difficulties with the implementation of the Northern Ireland Protocol were inevitable after former prime minister Theresa May “conceded the so-called full-alignment wording”.
Former Brexit secretary David Davis said he predicted at Chequers that the Northern Ireland protocol would be problematic
He told Sky News: “It was one of the things I resigned over you may remember.
“I did predict that the prime minister at the time, when she conceded the so-called full-alignment wording, that this was problematic, not what we were promised, and would lead to difficulties in the future – and that is exactly what we are seeing.”
Conservative Mr Davis added: “Once you’ve got to the point of agreeing the alignment of Northern Irish regulations with the south Irish regulations you are creating a border.
“Of one sort or another, you are creating a border which would end up falling in the Irish Sea.”
Mr Davis added that the issues “will be resolved” but that it is “an unnecessary difficulty” which “will add a couple of years of negotiation to the overall outcome”.
Shares in The Magnum Ice Cream Company (TMICC) have fallen slightly on debut after the completion of its spin-off from Unilever amid a continuing civil war with one of its best-known brands.
Shares in the Netherlands-based company are trading for the first time following the demerger.
It creates the world’s biggest ice cream company, controlling around one fifth of the global market.
Primary Magnum shares, in Amsterdam, opened at €12.20 – down on the €12.80 reference price set by the EuroNext exchange, though they later settled just above that level, implying a market value of €7.9bn – just below £7bn.
The company is also listed in London and New York.
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Unilever stock was down 3.1% on the FTSE 100 in the wake of the spin off.
The demerger allows London-headquartered Unilever to concentrate on its wider stable of consumer brands, including Marmite, Dove soap and Domestos.
The decision to hive off the ice cream division, made in early 2024, gives a greater focus on a market that is tipped to grow by up to 4% each year until 2029.
Ben & Jerry’s accounts for a greater volume of group revenue now under TMICC. Pic: Reuters
But it has been dogged by a long-running spat with the co-founders of Ben & Jerry’s, which now falls under the TMICC umbrella and accounts for 14% of group revenue.
Unilever bought the US brand in 2000, but the relationship has been sour since, despite the creation of an independent board at that time aimed at protecting the brand’s social mission.
The most high-profile spat came in 2021 when Ben & Jerry’s took the decision not to sell ice cream in Israeli-occupied Palestinian territories on the grounds that sales would be “inconsistent” with its values.
Unilever responded by selling the business to its licensee in Israel.
A series of rows have followed akin to a tug of war, with Magnum refusing repeated demands by the co-founders of Ben & Jerry’s to sell the brand back.
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Sept: ‘Free Ben & Jerry’s’
Magnum and Unilever argue its mission has strayed beyond what was acceptable back in 2000, with the brand evolving into one-sided advocacy on polarising topics that risk reputational and business damage.
TMICC is currently trying to remove the chair of Ben & Jerry’s independent board.
It said last month that Anuradha Mittal “no longer meets the criteria” to serve after internal investigations.
An audit of the separate Ben & Jerry’s Foundation, where she is also a trustee, found deficiencies in financial controls and governance. Magnum said the charitable arm risked having funding removed unless the alleged problems were addressed.
The Reuters news agency has since reported that Ms Mittal has no plans to quit her roles, and accused Magnum of attempts to “discredit” her and undermine the authority of the independent board.
Magnum boss Peter ter Kulve said on Monday: “Today is a proud milestone for everyone associated with TMICC. We became the global leader in ice cream as part of the Unilever family. Now, as an independent listed company, we will be more agile, more focused, and more ambitious than ever.”
Commenting on the demerger, Hargreaves Lansdown equity analyst Aarin Chiekrie said: “TMICC is already free cash flow positive, and profitable in its own right. The balance sheet is in decent shape, but dividends are off the cards until 2027 as the group finds its footing as a standalone business.
“That could cause some downward pressure on the share price in the near term, as dividend-focussed investment funds that hold Unilever will be handed TMICC shares, the latter of which they may be forced to sell to abide by their investment mandate.”
Donald Trump has said he will be “involved” in the decision on whether Netflix should be allowed to buy Warner Bros, as the $72bn (£54bn) deal attracts a media industry backlash.
The US president acknowledged in remarks to reporters there “could be a problem”, acknowledging concerns over the streaming giant’s market dominance.
Crucially, he did not say where he stood on the issue.
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It was revealed on Friday that Netflix, already the world’s biggest streaming service by market share, had agreed to buy Warner Bros Discovery’s TV, film studios and HBO Max streaming division.
The deal aims to complete late next year after the Discovery element of the business, mainly legacy TV channels showing cartoons, news and sport, has been spun off.
But the deal has attracted cross-party criticism on competition grounds, and there is also opposition in Hollywood.
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Netflix agrees $72bn takeover of Warner Bros
The Writers Guild of America said: “The world’s largest streaming company swallowing one of its biggest competitors is what antitrust laws were designed to prevent.
“The outcome would eliminate jobs, push down wages, worsen conditions for all entertainment workers, raise prices for consumers, and reduce the volume and diversity of content for all viewers.”
File pic: Reuters
Republican Senator, Roger Marshall, said in a statement: “Netflix’s attempt to buy Warner Bros would be the largest media takeover in history – and it raises serious red flags for consumers, creators, movie theaters, and local businesses alike.
“One company should not have full vertical control of the content and the distribution pipeline that delivers it. And combining two of the largest streaming platforms is a textbook horizontal Antitrust problem.
“Prices, choice, and creative freedom are at stake. Regulators need to take a hard look at this deal, and realize how harmful it would be for consumers and Western society.”
Paramount Skydance and Comcast, the parent company of Sky News, were two other bidders in the auction process that preceded the announcement.
The Reuters news agency, citing information from sources, said their bids were rejected in favour of Netflix for different reasons.
Paramount’s was seen as having funding concerns, they said, while Comcast’s was deemed not to offer so many earlier benefits.
Paramount is run by David Ellison, the son of the Oracle tech billionaire Larry Ellison, who is a close ally of Mr Trump.
The president said of the Netflix deal’s path to regulatory clearance: “I’ll be involved in that decision”.
On the likely opposition to the deal. he added: “That’s going to be for some economists to tell. But it is a big market share. There’s no question it could be a problem.”
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