Last month, the News Letter revealed that the number of products unavailable in Northern Ireland could be set to rise in September as new Windsor Framework arrangements come into place – with one dog food company already telling customers that it will no longer be able to deliver to addresses here. New rules for parcels entering Northern Ireland from Great Britain come into effect at the end of this month, with business to business parcels having to register for the green lane – if eligible – to be able to trade more smoothly. Advertisement Advertisement Did you know with an ad-lite subscription to NorthernIrelandWorld, you get 70% fewer ads while viewing the news that matters to you.
Businesses not meeting the criteria for the green lane will have to send goods through the red lane – in other words a full EU customs border. It appears it is already having a chilling effect on certain businesses in Great Britain who supplied Northern Ireland without problems until the Protocol – and latterly the Windsor Framework – were introduced. TUV leader Jim Allister said: “It is now less than four weeks until the new Irish Sea Parcels Border descends on 30 September.
“The disruption it is causing is already evident as increasing numbers of providers based in the rest of the country are deciding to discontinue trading with Northern Ireland, not because it is not legal for them to do so, but because the imminent erection of the parcels border imposes additional complexi.