Charlie McConalogue (Donegal, Fianna Fail)
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From 31 January 2024 UK Government has confirmed that the following requirements will apply for exports of agri-food goods from EU including Ireland to Great Britain (GB):

• prenotification of imports by GB importers on the UK’s SPS import system (IPAFFS) will apply to all Irish SPS goods exported to GB and via GB landbridge to EU.
• export health certification must be provided for goods categorised as medium risk by UK including meat products, dairy products such as infant formula and products made from raw milk, table eggs, animal feedingstuffs which include animal by-products

My Department, as has been the case throughout the Brexit process, continues to support all stakeholders in Ireland-GB agri-food supply chains, including farmers, in preparing to meet these changes to the trading environment.

In respect of the changes which will now apply from 31 January my Department:

• carried out a comprehensive assessment of new UK requirements which has included the revision of certification business processes for each commodity, the development of updated standard operating procedures for certification based on new UK health certificate requirements and carried our detailed surveys of Irish Food Businesses (FBOs) to quantify certification requirements.
• is implementing a targeted communications plan focused on informing all stakeholders of the new UK requirements and timelines;
• is engaging with UK Authorities at technical and strategic level to get clarity on UK approach;
• is implementing a comprehensive staff resourcing plan to support export certification, this includes recruitment and redeployment of veterinary and technical resources;
• is providing detailed training programmes for certifying officers and food businesses exporting to GB;
• is investing in new IT infrastructure to support certification at food businesses around the country;
• will implement a programme of trials with Food Businesses on export certification process in January 2024.
• is having ongoing detailed engagement via local veterinary supervisory teams with individual food businesses to ensure business processes are in place to deliver certification in the most efficient and sustainable manner.

All of these activities are focused on supporting Irish agri-food exporters in preparing for these significant changes and ensuring any disruption to trade is minimised. It is important that all businesses including farm businesses exporting to GB engage with these preparatory activities.

In addition as part of the Government's response to challenges arising from Brexit my Department has also put in place a number of measures to support and enhance the resilience and competitiveness of Irish agri-food producers. This includes supports for livestock sector via the National Beef Welfare Scheme, National Dairy Beef Welfare Scheme as well the Bovine Genotyping Programme and a number of schemes to support the horticulture sector including specific measures for the mushroom and potato sectors.

The Department in conjunction with the Department of Enterprise, Trade and Employment and the Strategic Banking Corporation of Ireland (SBCI), also launched the Brexit Impact Loan Scheme in October 2021. The scheme provides loans to Brexit-impacted Irish businesses for working capital, investment and re-financing.

My Department will continue to monitor the impacts of Brexit changes on Ireland-GB trading environment including those which come into effect from 31 January and support Irish exporters in meeting any challenges which develop.