26 March 2023
By Elaine Murphy
elaine@TheCork.ie
Cork and Ireland South MEP, Deirdre Clune, has been appointed as a lead negotiator for the European Parliament’s Environment, Public Health & Food Safety Committee in ensuring the adoption of the new legislative proposals contained within the recently agreed Windsor Framework.
MEP Clune, who represents the EPP Group, the largest political group in the parliament, said “The Windsor Framework is a very significant achievement. The outcome avoids a hard border on the island of Ireland, while minimising checks and controls on goods moving from Great Britain to Northern Ireland.
“The new arrangements simplify the EU’s Sanitary and Phytosanitary (SPS) controls, while including safeguards to protect against animal and plant disease entering the EU via Northern Ireland. Based on an expanded trusted trader scheme, physical checks on SPS goods will be reduced down to 5% following the implementation of this agreement and will be carried out on a risk based and intelligence-led approach to minimise disruption.“
“The Windsor Framework will also ensure the continuous supply of medicines to patients in Northern Ireland. The EU has been both pragmatic and flexible when it comes to guaranteeing patient safety, amending its own legislation to ensure the uninterrupted supply of novel and generic medicines from Great Britain to Northern Ireland.
“The agreement deals with the real-life concerns of all communities in Northern Ireland, striking the right balance between flexibilities and effective safeguards for the protection of the EU Single Market.
“I am confident that these proposals will get the full consideration and necessary support from my parliamentary colleagues”, MEP Clune concluded.
