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Commenting the second week of divorce talks with EU representatives on Sky News, shadow trade minister Gardiner said the UK negotiating team needs to show clarity on whether the country will continue to pay in certain EU agencies.

He was adamant about continued membership of the European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) which overseas civilian aviation safety and includes all 28 countries of the EU plus Norway, Iceland, Switzerland and Liechtenstein.

The leasing agreements for all for all the aircraft that take off in the UK stipulate within them that after certain hours of flight time they have to then be serviced within the EU.

Getty/ Sky News

That would mean that those airplanes cannot be serviced within the UK. Somebody this morning at the stock exchange spoke of that as being a death spiral for our aviation industry.

Gardiner said that the UK ought consider continuing paying into EASA to avoid major disruption after Brexit.

The shadow International Trade minister argued that the Governments stance remains unclear and it should sort out the principles of the divorce to cut out future complications.

We need very quickly to be discussing the substantive agreement between ourselves and the European Union post Brexit.

Gardiners statement follows the announcement that easyJet decided to establish its new headquarters outside of the UK following the official divorce in order to maintain its European Air Operator Certificate (AOC).

The licence will allow the company to fly its planes in the EU after Britain leaves the bloc and steer away from additional costs or regulations.

An easyJet spokesperson said the group recognised the importance of aviation for all countries of Europe and confirmed nothing will change.

"We have had positive discussions with the UK and European Governments and the EU on this, and it is a position which is supported by other major European airlines."

Continued here:
Labour front-bencher tries to claim Brexit will cause aviation DEATH SPIRAL - Express.co.uk

Strict food preparation standards in the EU nearly ruined a favorite snack in Belgium: What us Americans call French fries more appropriatels known as pommes frites.

Reuters reports that the national government of Belgium said on Wednesday that the EU agreed to compromise on their food safety rules, allowing Belgiums friteries to continue preparing Belgian fries in the traditional manner.

The Belgian fry is saved! Europe has listened to Belgium," Belgiums Agriculture Minister Willy Borsus said in a statement posted to Twitter.

Coincidentally, the news that Belgium would not have to sacrifice this beloved cultural tradition to appease the EU cametwo days before Belgiums National Day, their holiday commemorating the 1830 revolution that won Belgium independencefrom the Netherlands.

People may take their fries seriously in America, but in Belgium, where they're known as either pommes frites, frieten in Flemish, or patat in Dutch.Theyre a deeply ingrained aspect of their history, and one of the most popular foods in the country. Traditionally, theyre served with a hearty dollop of mayonnaise in a paper cone, or alongside steamed mussels.

The Belgian people also insist they originated the snack instead of the French; one historical document supports the hypothesis that potatoes were being deep-fried in Belgium as far back as 1680.

It makes sense, then, that for weeks, Belgianshave been waiting with bated breathfor the EU to officially excuse their precious fries from regulations that would require cafs and restaurants to actively reduce the amount of carcinogenic acrylamidea substance naturally produced when roasting, baking, fryingfoods, but that some advocates in the EU believe can cause cancer. The traditional method of frying the potato piecestwice in Belgium makes them crunchier, but also produces more of the acrylamide.

Thankfully, Belgian frite-makers can continue to fry up those crispy, greasy spears of deliciousness however they see fit.

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European Union Excuses Belgian Fries from New Food Safety Rules - Food & Wine

New figures released by the European Commission today show that customs authorities detained more than 41 million fake and counterfeit products at the EU's external border in 2016. The goods had a total value of over 670 million. Everyday products which are potentially dangerous to health and safety such as food and drink, medicines, toys and household electrical goods -accounted for over a third of all intercepted goods.

Pierre Moscovici, Commissioner for Economic and Financial Affairs, Taxation and Customs, said:"A high level of protection of intellectual property is crucial to support growth and create jobs. Fake goods pose a real threat to health and safety of EU consumers and also undermine legal businesses and state revenues. Studies show that the EU is particularly exposed to imports of counterfeit products. I want to pay tribute to the hard work of customs authorities in combating these fake goods. They need support and resources to enable them to protect us all from the dangers that they can pose. Cooperation between law enforcement authorities should be strengthened and risk management systems upgraded to protect the EU from goods infringing on intellectual property rights."

Cigarettes were the top category (24%) forarticlesdetained and toys the second largest group (17%), followed by foodstuffs (13%) and packaging material (12%). The number of intercepted articles rose by 2% compared to 2015.

Chinaremains the clear leader when it comes to the provenance of fake goods: 80% of articles arrived from China in 2016. Large amounts of cigarettes originated in Vietnam and Pakistan,whileSingapore was the top source for counterfeit alcoholic beverages. Iran was the main source country for fake clothing accessories. Hong Kong was the leader for counterfeitmobile phones and Indiatopped the listfor counterfeitmedicines. Inmore than90% ofdetentions, goods were either destroyed or a court case was initiated to determineaninfringement or as part of criminal procedures.

The Commission's report on customs actions to enforce IPR has been issued annually since 2000and isbased on data transmitted by Member States' customs administrations to the Commission.

The data provide valuable informationwhich supports the analysis of intellectual property rights infringements and helps other institutions such as the European Union Intellectual Property Office and the OECD to map economic data and the most common routes for counterfeiters.

Click here for the full report.

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Customs Union: EU customs seized over 41 million fake goods at EU borders last year - EU News

Protesters in front of the presidential palace in Warsaw urge the president, Andrzej Duda, to reject a bill altering the independence of the judiciary system. Photograph: Alik Kplicz/AP

The EU is on the brink of taking the nuclear option of stripping Poland of its voting rights in Brussels in response to plans by its rightwing government to abolish the independence of the countrys judiciary.

Frans Timmermans, the first vice-president of the European commission, accused Warsaw of seeking to put judges under full political control as he warned that the EU was very close to triggering article 7, a never-before-used sanction in the treaties that allows a member states voting rights in the council of ministers to be suspended.

Polands ruling rightwing Law and Justice party (PiS) has been in almost constant conflict with the European commission since it was elected. In recent weeks the Polish government has proposed a series of reforms that would give ministers power over the appointment of judges and members of the countrys supreme court.

The first step in the EU triggering article 7 is an assessment of whether there has been a breach of fundamental rights, which could be launched as early as next week on the recommendation of the commission. What we decide next week depends on developments also this week, Timmermans said, as he called for fresh dialogue with Warsaw.

Should a breach of fundamental rights be found, a motion to suspend Polands voting rights would then need to win the support of member states under the EUs system of qualified majority voting. Two-thirds of the European parliament would also need to give its consent.

Timmermans told reporters in Brussels that the recent proposal from the Polish government to increase political control of the judiciary was a grave threat to the fundamental values of the EU.

These laws considerably increase the systemic threat to the rule of law in Poland. Each individual law, if adopted, would seriously erode the independence of the Polish judiciary. Collectively they would abolish any remaining judicial independence and put the judiciary under full political control of the government.

Under these reforms judges will serve at the pleasure of political leaders, and be dependent upon them, from their appointment to their pension.

The commissioner added: I think every citizen wants to have, if they need to, a day in court without having to say, Hmm, is this judge going to get a call from a minister telling him what to do?.

Timmermans said he was confident he would have the support of member states should he recommend the triggering of article 7.

In Warsaw, Rafa Trzaskowski, an MP with the opposition Civic Platform party and a former Europe minister, said Poland was being pushed to the margins of the EU by its authoritarian government.

He said: Its absolutely clear that patience is running out, not only in the European commission, but also in many European capitals.

The initiation of article 7 would be unprecedented, and it would show quite clearly how marginalised the current government is in the European Union.

Timmermans, a former Dutch minister who has been the subject of personal attacks by Polish ministers over his tough stance with Poland in recent months, said he had written earlier this month to Warsaw about his concerns, but appeals for the proposed laws not to be pursued had been ignored. Two of the four pieces of legislation in question have since been adopted by parliament.

Timmermans said any concerns that triggering article 7 would push Poland to follow the UK out of the union would not be an obstacle to the EU taking action. He insisted there was no way the Polish people would ever choose to leave the union.

The commissioner also called on the Polish government to respect the right of journalists to do their job, after a Brussels-based TV journalist was accused by state-controlled Polish TV of asking politically motivated questions with intent to harm Poland after she sought information from the European commission about its intentions with regard to protecting the rule of law.

There are lot of emotions around this, he said. A lot of personal attacks, peoples personal credibility or integrity has been put to discussion, mine, other peoples. I can take it. They should take their best shot. But what should not be happening is that journalists should be intimidated.

Andrzej Duda, Polands PiS-aligned president, had sought to calm the situation on Tuesday evening, as crowds gathered outside the presidential palace for a candlelit vigil to demand he veto the supreme court legislation.

In a televised address, he said he would only sign the supreme court bill if legislation passed last week giving parliament control of the National Council of the Judiciary (KRS), a hitherto independent body responsible for appointing Polish judges, were amended.

Under Dudas proposal, appointments to the KRS would require a three-fifths majority in parliament, rather than a simple majority as contained in the present legislation, meaning that as parliament is presently constituted, Law and Justice would not be able to appoint judges by itself.

The judiciary is a very serious issue. It needs to be reformed but wisely, he said, arguing that his aim was to avoid accusations that the KRS is working under a political dictate. However, Timmermans suggested that the president had not gone far enough. Under Dudas proposal a coalition of Law and Justice and affiliated rightwing parties would still be able to push through appointments to the body. The supreme court legislation before parliament envisages silent consent for judicial appointments should the KRS not express a view within 14 days, meaning that a paralysed council would still give the justice minister the power of appointment over the supreme court.

Dudas proposal does not change the essential mechanisms of the three combined legal acts, which grant the government political control over the judiciary, said Mikoaj Pietrzak, chair of the Warsaw Bar Association. Its not constitutional, and its not satisfactory. Its just smoke and mirrors.

The European commission is also preparing infringement proceedings against Poland for breaches in EU law. Asked whether Hungary whose rightwing prime minister, Viktor Orbn, has also repeatedly clashed with the commission could also be in line for the ultimate sanction, Timmermans said the nature of Polands breaches was of a far more serious nature.

Link:
Poland may be stripped of EU voting rights over judicial independence - The Guardian

President Trump suggested in a visit to the Pentagon Thursday that he might hold off on sending more troops to Afghanistan, despite a recent order that he signed authorizing the Pentagon to add more forces.

Asked if he would send more troops to Afghanistan, where the Taliban have made significant gains in recent months, Trump replied: Well see. And were doing very well against ISIS. ISIS is falling fast.

The fight against the Islamic State in Afghanistan is only a tiny piece of the broader battle in the country to stabilize Afghanistans faltering central government and slow the Talibans battlefield momentum.

Trump gave Defense Secretary Jim Mattis the authority more than a month ago to send as many as 3,900 additional troops to Afghanistan on top of the 8,500 currently there. Most of those forces would be used to bolster the Afghan Army in its fight against the Taliban, rather than battle the relatively small Islamic State force in the country.

But Mattis has yet to send those additional forces and some U.S. officials have speculated that either he or the White House could be having second thoughts.

Hes clearly being cautious about cashing that check, said a former U.S. official who has participated in the administration debate. Mattis is either not persuaded that theres a strategic rationale for the troops or hes not persuaded that the decision will ultimately fly with the president or both.

Trumps remarks at the Pentagon, where he met with senior commanders who gave him a briefing on the status of U.S. forces globally, is likely to add to the uncertainty surrounding the possible deployment of U.S. forces.

On Wednesday, Trump presided over a rare meeting of his full national security team Wednesday in the White House that focused on Afghanistan, Pakistan and the prospects for peace talks with the Taliban.

Trump has said little about Americas longest war since taking office in January, but the debate over how to stabilize the country and reverse the Talibans momentum has divided top officials in the Pentagon, the State Department and the White House in recent weeks.

The meeting Wednesday was designed to tee up final decisions for the president in what has been a long and difficult policy review, said current and former U.S. officials.

The meeting that Trump led in the White House did not focus on the size of the American force in Afghanistan but looked at Americas broader approach to the region and its strategy regarding Pakistan, which has provided a haven for the Taliban.

National security adviser H.R. McMaster and U.S. commanders in Afghanistan have pressed for a more punitive approach to Pakistan aimed at forcing it to cut ties to the Afghan Taliban.

But such an approach has been met with skepticism by senior officials in the Pentagon and the State Department, who said that Pakistan is unlikely to change its behavior and that efforts to pressure Islamabad would likely lead to greater instability in the region.

Top U.S. officials have also been divided over whether to seek peace negotiations with the Taliban now or wait until the new U.S. strategy has begun to shift the momentum on the battlefield. The McMaster view is that you should not negotiate with the Taliban while they are still ascendant, said the former U.S. official.

But the current U.S.-Afghan war strategy is built around a four-year plan to push back the Taliban that is not likely to yield significant results until its later stages, U.S. officials said.

Earlier this week, Trump met over lunch with service members who had fought in Afghanistan and suggested that his patience with the war might be running out.

Its our longest war. Weve been there for many years, Trump told reporters before the lunch. Weve been there for now close to 17 years, and I want to find out why weve been there for 17 years, how its going, and what we should do in terms of additional ideas.

One challenge for Trump is that there are not a lot of new options available to him that do not come with a big price tag. In recent months, Trump has loosened the rules governing American airstrikes, allowing U.S. forces to boost the air campaign against the Taliban to levels not seen since 2012, when the United States had 100,000 troops in the country.

Im skeptical that the strategy can be dramatically improved, said Michael OHanlon, a senior fellow at the Brookings Institution. You can try to be tougher on Pakistan. You can try to make clear that we are there for a long-term commitment. But I dont expect a dramatic metamorphosis of this mission.

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Trump suggests that more US troops might not be needed in Afghanistan - Washington Post