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Once again a Tory Government Minister is saying that the export chaos that is threatening the future of Scottish food businesses amounts to 'teething problems' or is all the fault of the French and the Dutch -
They have made a bollocks of Brexit and they want to dodge responsibility. They've set up a 'Scottish Seafood Exports Task Force' to complement the 'Seafood Exports Working Group' - it's funny on Yes Minister, not when jobs and businesses are at stake https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-scotland-scotland-politics-55966617
That task force is being chaired by another Tory Minister, David Duguid whose response four weeks ago when asked about how long it would take for the Tories to act to save Scottish fishing businesses was "how long is a piece of string?" https://twitter.com/adampayne26/status/1349680082076520449?s=20
and in September last year, when there were all kinds of warnings about losing access to the European markets and what that would mean for the fishing industry he tweeted this - https://twitter.com/david_duguid/status/1303402848957485057?s=20
It's part of the job of government ministers to look at coming problems and seek to head them off but here we have a minister who ignored the warnings, did nothing but toe the party Brexit line and is now being trusted with the job of cleaning up the mess #BrexitChaos
The horror of all of this is that it looks like the Tories want to try to tough it out and try to look like they know what they're doing, as reported here - https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/politics/brexit-exports-eu-trade-talks-latest-b1797559.html
Reports have continued to come in of produce not reaching its market and the incredible wastage that brings - including the loss of the food itself which is atrocious - https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-01-30/a-month-on-from-brexit-u-k-firms-are-being-slowly-ground-down
The Road Haulage Association reported that exports to the EU are down to a third of what they were and they can get no answers from Michael Gove - Minister for all and nothing at all https://news.sky.com/story/exports-to-the-eu-have-plummeted-by-68-since-brexit-12211169
well, he sent a response of sorts today, sharing Dover Port's news that the remaining exports and empty lorries are flowing freely - not exactly the relief that the businesses were looking for https://twitter.com/michaelgove/status/1358785813711060995?s=20
If the Tories were serious about saving the fishing industry, the high quality meat exports, the dairy exports, the small businesses relying on mail order exports and so on, it wouldn't be David Duguid chairing a taskforce, it would be the Prime Minister on the phone to the EU
It wasn't so long ago that the Prime Minister was telling folk in Northern Ireland that there would be no forms for goods moving across the Irish Sea. Now he says there are some problems with form filling but businesses won't survive his macho posturing - https://www.thelondoneconomic.com/politics/exclusive-brexit-red-tape-has-robbed-us-of-business-essex-oysterman-says/20/01/
What we need is the UK Government to swallow its Brexit pride and admit that there are problems that need addressed right now. Forget the posturing and the grandstanding of the four and a half years from the Brexit vote to the separation, and get negotiating seriously #Brexit
It needs some give and take and the UK should negotiate in good faith so that businesses survive and jobs are protected. The better statesman would accept some loss of face for the benefit of the people he leads. Scotland will be independent soon but this damage will last
