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The Biden administration has come out strongly against Prime Minister Boris Johnsons government in the deepening row between the UK and European Union over the Northern Ireland Protocol.

The protocol governs post-Brexit trade. It was ostensibly designed to prevent the return of a hard border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, a European Union (EU) member state. However, it did so by effectively creating an EU border in the Irish Sea, which is anathema to the norths unionist parties and, especially on account of its substantial bureaucratic obstacles to trade, to the majority of the UK Conservative Party.

The Irish nationalist Sinn Fin for the first time secured the most votes of any party in the May 5 Northern Ireland Assembly elections, while the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) suffered heavy losses. The DUP responded by continuing to block the power sharing executive from meeting, by refusing to support the election of a new speaker. The Johnson government has used this to threaten a unilateral rewriting of the protocol, including by targeting the role of theEuropean Court of Justicein overseeing disputes and restoring Westminsters power to decide VAT sales tax rates. Last week Foreign Secretary Liz Truss proposed a bill to these ends, without releasing its contents, that could be adopted as early as next month.

This has raised genuine fears among many workers that the constitutional arrangements that ended the civil war in Northern Ireland, embodied in the 1998 Good Friday Agreement, could unravelbringing a return to sectarian conflict led above all by the hardline Unionists.

For British imperialism, the Tory/Unionist response not only threatens trade war with the EU but open conflict with the Biden administration. The US, which presided over the 1998 agreements, holds a dominant position in the Republics economy which it uses as a staging ground for accessing the Single European Market and as a tax shelter for its major corporations. But the threat to US operations in Europe is now meeting up with concern that the UK is endangering the coalition Washington has assembled to pursue military hostilities against Russia.

A delegation of US politicians this weekend began a tour of Europe and the UK, which continued Monday in Dublin and now moves on to Belfast. It is led by Richard E. Neal, the Democrat chairman of the House Ways and Means Committee. On Friday Congressman Brendan Boyle announced that a statement had been agreed with members of the European Parliament declaring that renegotiating the protocol is not an option. Speaking from west County Kerry in Ireland Sunday, Neal told RT, President Biden, Speaker Pelosi and I have made our position known that nothing can jeopardise the Good Friday Agreement.

He referred to Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosis tweets Thursday repeating the warning by Biden that there would be no chance of Congress supporting a US/UK free trade pact if the Good Friday Agreement is undermined. She wrote, As I have stated in my conversations with the Prime Minister, the Foreign Secretary and Members of the House of Commons, if the United Kingdom chooses to undermine the Good Friday Accords, the Congress cannot and will not support a bilateral free trade agreement with the United Kingdom.

In some ways more damaging still for Johnson, who has positioned himself as the number-one military ally of the US, Derek Chollet, the senior adviser to Secretary of State Anthony Blinken, told the BBC that a big fight between the UK and the EU was the last thing Washington wanted. Speaking after meetings in Downing Street Friday, he said Russian President Vladimir Putin would use any opportunity he can to show that our alliance is fraying We want to see this issue resolved and we want to see the temperature lowered and no unilateral acts.

It is a measure of the crisis gripping the Johnson government that the threats from the US met with an overtly hostile response. After what were described as frank talks with the US delegation at her country retreat ofChevening onSaturday, Truss tweeted that the UK is defending the Good Friday Agreement and warned that she would not let the situation drag on.

Former Brexit minister Lord Frost, who negotiated the protocol, told BBC Radio 4 that Pelosis intervention was ignorant because It is the protocol itself thats undermining [the Good Friday Agreement] and people who cant see that really shouldnt be commenting on the situation in Northern Ireland.

In the Daily Telegraph, Conor Burns, a Northern Ireland minister and Johnsons special Brexit envoy to the US, said, We seek an ambitious [free trade agreement] with the US. But there can be no connection between that and doing the right thing for Northern Ireland. None.'

One reason for the UKs intransigent pose is that many Tories have already given up on any prospect of a US trade deal, despite this being placed at the centre of the argument for a post-Brexit economic policy that would compensate for lost European trade. The New York Times commented that it is no longer clear how much leverage Pelosis threat has in the UK. The White House has signalled that striking a deal with Britain is not high on its list of priorities, anyway.

Such is the international isolation and emphasised weakness of British imperialism post-Brexit that the Tories are extraordinarily reliant on the Unionists, with all the dangers this entails. On Friday, DUP leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson warned, You cannot have power-sharing without consensus in Northern Ireland, describing Pelosis contributions as entirely unhelpful and repeating a mantra that frankly is hopelessly out of date. DUP Economy Minister Gordon Lyons described Neal as a supporter of Irish unification who had worked closely with Friends of Sinn Fin. Traditional Unionist Voice party representative Stephen Cooper denounced the interference of foreign figures and said that the Stormont parties should treat the belligerent meddling of Irish premier Michel Martin with the contempt it deserves.

This right-wing political block is facing off against an emerging alliance led by the US and encompassing the European imperialist powers, the Republic of Ireland, Sinn Fin and the pro-EU Alliance Party in the north, as well as Britains Labour Party and the Scottish National Party (SNP).

Underscoring the prospect of the break-up of the UK, SNP leader Nicola Sturgeon met with Sinn Fins deputy leader Michelle O'Neill Saturday at her official Edinburgh residence. Sturgeon linked separatism to Brexit, telling the media that Scotland and Northern Ireland both voted against Brexit, bringing to the fore a system of government thats been at play in the UK for some time now that is not serving all of our interests.

The struggle over the protocol has become the focus of extraordinary inter-imperialist and national tensions, in which the essential concerns of the working class find no genuine expression. For workers the only outcome of such conflicts in ruling circles, whatever democratic rhetoric is utilised, will be an escalation of already crushing levels of austerity as all sides seek competitive advantage at their expense while the availability of essential goods is jeopardised and prices go through the roof. Meanwhile all sides will continue with the war drive against Russia, even as they employ sectarianism and nationalism to and divide and politically demobilise the working class.

Faced with a deepening economic and social catastrophe and the headlong descent of the imperialist powers into a planet-threatening war, the working class must reject all siren appeals to line up behind opposed blocks of capitalist parties and states. The democratic and social aspirations of workers and youth in Northern Ireland, Catholic and Protestant, can only be realised through a politically conscious struggle for a united and socialist Ireland. But this fight must be linked with the emerging struggles of British workers against the hated and crisis-ridden Johnson government, and those of the entire European working class against their own exploitersagainst trade and military war and for the United Socialist States of Europe.

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US aligns with European Union against the UK on Northern Ireland Protocol - WSWS

LVIV / KYIV, 19 May 2022 UNICEF is set to expand urgently needed services for children in Ukraine including health, nutrition, water and sanitation, education, child protection and cash assistance thanks to a new commitment of EURO 9 million from the European Union (EU).

The funding will support critical services for children and families, including access to health care, safe water and hygiene, child protection, education and multi-purpose cash support.

Every day this brutal war continues, childrens needs increase across the country, said Catherine Russell, UNICEF Executive Director. This generous support from the European Union will help UNICEF reach more children with critical lifesaving services that they urgently need.

At least 3 million children need urgent humanitarian assistance inside Ukraine. The impact of the war is particularly acute for children stuck in active areas of fighting, children with disabilities, and unaccompanied and separated children.

This unjustified war has ripped Ukrainian children from their homes. Instead of being at schools, they are now trapped in bomb shelters or displaced, said Janez Lenari, EU Commissioner for Crisis Management. The European Union remains committed to provide immediate support to the children of Ukraine. As one of the most vulnerable groups, they need our protection urgently. Together with humanitarian partners like UNICEF, we ensure that lifesaving assistance reaches those most in need, added Lenari.

The European Union funding to UNICEF will ensure that:

UNICEF aims to reach 1,7 million people across Ukraine with life-saving assistance by the end of the summer 2022. This includes, delivering medicines and medical equipment, health, nutrition and WASH supplies and services, as well as psychosocial and educational support. The response continues to scale up as more children are affected by the war and are displaced across the country and outside.

ABOUT EU Humanitarian Aid

Through the European Commissions Civil Protection and Humanitarian aid Operations department, the European Union helps millions of victims of conflict and disasters every year. With headquarters in Brussels and a global network of field offices, the EU provides assistance to the most vulnerable people on the basis of humanitarian needs.

Media contacts

Nina Sorokopud

Chief of Communication

UNICEF in Ukraine

Email: nsorokopud@unicef.org

Originally posted here:
European Union contributes EURO 9 million to bolster UNICEF's lifesaving work for nearly 870000 children affected by war in Ukraine [EN/UK] - Ukraine...

Although the existence of sport can be traced back as far as 776 BC, it has only featured at the level of the European Union (EU) in the late 1980s owing to an increase in economic activity.

Today, EU law is of considerable importance in the regulation of sport. Although there has been an increase in EU legislation that seeks to regulate sport, at the same time EU law still fundamentally recognises the sporting autonomy principle within Sport Governing Bodies (SGBs).

Such sporting autonomy, which can take various forms such as legal, political, and financial, allows Sport Governing Bodies to establish, amend and interpret their rules freely, without any undue political or economic influence.

The competence of the EU in relation to sport is to develop an evidence-based policy and to foster cooperation and manage initiatives in support of physical activity and sport across Europe.

In 2017, the European Commission released a White Paper on Sport which was hailed as being the first comprehensive initiative on sport by the EU.

Independent journalism costs money. Support Times of Malta for the price of a coffee.

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Sport and the European Union - Times of Malta

WARSAW, Poland (AP) Polands controversial disciplinary chamber for the countrys top court on Monday changed its own previous ruling and ordered an outspoken judge reinstated to work.

The decision comes as Polands leaders are debating abolishing the Disciplinary Chamber of the Supreme Court, which has been a sore point in Polands relations with the European Union and an obstacle in obtaining much-needed EU funds for pandemic recovery. A draft law by President Andrzej Duda on the topic could be debated in parliament this week.

The right-wing government, which is pursuing a generous social policy and extending aid to hundreds of thousands of Ukrainian war refugees, is seeking ways to reach an accord with the EU on the issue of the judiciary and obtain the frozen billions of euros.

The EU said it was a breach of the rule of law and launched sanctioning steps after Polands government used the disciplinary chamber which is intended to ensure the highest judicial standards to sanction and suspend judges who had been critical of changes that put the justice system under political control.

One of the judges, Pawel Juszczyszyn, was suspended and had his earnings reduced in early 2020, and has been battling for reinstatement. On Monday, a one-judge panel of the Disciplinary Chamber ruled that Juszczyszyns long suspension violated the independence that judges are entitled to and interfered with Polands justice system.

Juszczyszyns superior at the court in Olsztyn vowed Monday to reinstate him within weeks.

Other judges are battling against their suspensions, which they see as politically-motivated, including Igor Tuleya of a Warsaw court.

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Poland's divisive disciplinary body restores judge to work - The Associated Press

There is a limited risk of another housing bubble developing in Ireland due to stricter rules that have reduced risk in the financial system, the European Commission has found in an in-depth review.

The review was triggered in 2021 because during the height of the Covid-19 pandemic European Union officials identified Ireland as having macroeconomic imbalances due to high private and public debt levels.

However, Ireland is no longer experiencing such an imbalance, partly due to an exceptional economic growth of 13.5 per cent last year, the commission found. Ireland was the only EU country to avoid recession, bolstered by the strong performance of multinational companies, and the economic outlook remains positive as the country is relatively sheltered from the effect of the war in Ukraine.

Overall, effective macro prudential policy settings suggest risks of another housing bubble remain limited, the review found.

Overall, the financial sector looks much healthier compared to the run-up of the great financial crisis. Since then Irish banks have become significantly more resilient and the introduction of stricter rules and requirements contributed to addressing many pre-crisis vulnerabilities of the banking sector.

House prices are expected to continue to increase this year due to a combination of factors including inward migration, households funnelling increase savings into real estate, and pent-up demand following the pandemic.

House price growth is expected to remain high in 2022 as demand continues to outstrip supply, the report stated.

The influx of refugees from Ukraine is expected to increase housing demand pressures. Population growth was concentrated in urban areas where the shortage of housing was most acute.

A sharp increase in mortgage approvals in 2021 suggests that a backlog has built up, which may contribute to continued house price inflation in 2022, it found.

Measures introduced by the Government have had an overall positive impact on housing availability, according to the review, which found that public investment in social housing and reforms of the planning and development process will increase the housing supply.

However, labour shortages and inflation in the cost of building materials will challenge the governments Housing for All plan, by delaying projects and making them less affordable.

Illustrating the pressure, it noted that the price of rough timber rose by 43 per cent while reinforcing metal rose by 35 per cent in 2021, due to a combination of higher shipping costs, Covid-19 factory closures, price increases in iron ore and energy and the pre-selling of stock materials.

The knock-on effects on raw material prices from the war in Ukraine and strong competition from large-scale retrofitting projects may continue to keep prices amongst the highest in the EU, it predicted.

The extraordinarily marked economic growth of the past decade in Ireland has decreased both private debt and public debt, the review found.

There are risks to the Governments finances ahead, however, including the public spending required to address the persistent undersupply of housing.

In addition, the economy requires major intervention to become more sustainable and bring down net greenhouse gas emissions per capita that are 80 per cent higher than the EU average, which will require significant action over this decade.

Originally posted here:
Limited risk of another housing bubble in Ireland, says European Commission - The Irish Times