Updated / Tuesday, 12 Jan 2021
15:50
Mr Cullen said there is no doubt that turbulent trading conditions will be evident for some time.
The Irish Exporters Association (IEA) has named Barry Cullen as 2021 President of the association.
Mr Cullen, who is Head of Sales for Silver Hill Duck, has been a member of the IEA s National Council since 2018, brings a wealth of experience and expertise to the Presidency of the IEA.
Living and working in the border region, Mr Cullen also chairs the association’s Border-Midlands Network Group in which he regularly brings exporters in the region together, on an online platform, to discuss common challenges, particularly Brexit.
Irish companies are bracing themselves for delays in deliveries, product shortages and increased costs as Brexit-related trade issues begin to emerge.
A steep fall in freight volumes in recent weeks - as well as a move by Revenue to temporarily waive some red-tape requirements - meant that problems with the new Brexit customs regime had not led to wide scale traffic disruption at ports last week.
But, the Sunday Independent has spoken to several exporting firms, retailers and industry representatives who said they were already seeing signs of problems and have concerns these may worsen as trading volumes return to normal levels. Food retailers have noted issues relating to some products, which may lead to short-term delays and increased consumer costs.
31 December 2020
On Christmas Eve, we all got an early present: the conclusion, after 9 months, of a Trade and Co-operation Agreement between the UK and the EU, and the conclusion, after four and a half years – almost to the day – of the process begun with the UK’s referendum vote to leave the EU.
At the end of this year, I’d like to thank the business community in Ireland for your engagement, support and all the contributions you have made during this period, and I want to set out how the UK government sees the prospects for the new year and beyond.
Updated / Thursday, 24 Dec 2020
16:35
Mr McGrane said the new trade agreement will help to protect nearly €90bn in trade across the Irish Sea.
This Christmas Eve, businesses and representative bodies have been reacting to the news that agreement has been reached between negotiators on a Brexit trade agreement between the EU and UK.
John McGrane, Director General of the British Irish Chamber of Commerce said that businesses in Ireland and across the UK can breathe a collective sigh of relief today.
Mr McGrane said the new trade agreement will help to protect nearly €90bn in trade across the Irish Sea and sustain 400,000 jobs on these islands.
Ferry firm Stena Line has brought forward a planned doubling of its direct Ireland to France freight service in response to huge demand from Irish hauliers hit by the closure of the French border to arrivals from Britain.
While freight services were exempt from Ireland s ban on Sunday on travel to Britain over fears of a new coronavirus strain, around 3,000 lorries take the shorter route to mainland Europe via the so-called British land-bridge each week.
Stena had planned to add a second ship to its service from Ireland s Rosslare harbour to the French port of Cherbourg from Jan. 4, doubling the number of weekly sailings to six as Britain s Brexit transition period came to an end.