Brown O'Connor Communications Weekly Look Ahead: Week Commencing 19 July 2021

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Forward Look

  • Northern Ireland Secretary Brandon Lewis MP has set out the UK Government’s plans to bring forward legislation addressing the legacy of the Troubles. A statute of limitations will be introduced banning all Troubles-related prosecutions, alongside a new independent body to enable family members to seek information on deaths and injuries incurred during the conflict.

  • Stormont party leaders will meet the NI Secretary today. The SDLP has proposed a recall of the Assembly from Summer recess to address the legacy proposals, with the petition expected to reach the 30 signatures required to recall MLAs.

  • Northern Ireland’s Covid-19 vaccination certificate is expected to be obtainable from Monday. Available digitally or in paper form, the certificate will allow people to show they are fully vaccinated for international travel purposes.

  • Brexit Minister Lord Frost will present new proposals on the Northern Ireland Protocol to Parliament before the Summer recess begins next Friday. Lord Frost said this week that increased cross-border trade as a consequence of the Protocol is “in many ways a problem”.

  • Speaking in the House of Commons, DUP Leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson MP has set out the party’s seven tests for supporting a replacement to the Protocol. This includes a role for Northern Irish citizens in any regulations impacting them and no new regulatory barriers between GB-NI unless agreed by the Assembly.

  • G20 Finance Ministers have endorsed a plan to introduce a global minimum tax rate and change the tax liabilities of large multinational companies. The reform is expected to be finalised at an OECD summit in October. The Irish Examiner has reported this week that Ireland is set to abandon its long-held 12.5% corporate tax rate in fear of having a global ‘pariah’ status.

  • Quarantine rules for fully-vaccinated people returning to Northern Ireland from amber-list countries will be eased from Monday.

  • The Irish Times has reported that a growing number of Fianna Fáil TDs believe Taoiseach Micheál Martin TD will not lead the party into the next general election. The party received less than 5% of first-preference votes in the Dublin Bay South by-election last week, won by Labour’s Ivana Bacik TD.

  • The EU has announced its 12-point plan to tackle climate change with the goal of achieving carbon neutrality by 2050. The plan includes proposals to ban the sale of petrol and diesel powered cars within 20 years and increase taxes on jet fuel.

  • The Irish Government has announced plans to strengthen the Regulation of Lobbying Act 2015 following a review of the operation of lobbying regulations. The changes will mainly concern ex-ministers or politicians who leave office and take up private lobbying positions.

  • The Financial Conduct Authority has announced it will establish an office in Belfast by the end of 2021.

  • The Londonderry Chamber of Commerce’s 63rd President’s Annual Dinner will take place on Friday, 8 October 2021 in the Everglades Hotel, Derry. The event will feature a keynote speech from RTÉ Europe Editor Tony Connelly. To book: LINK.

  • A documentary by Cypress Avenue Films and Fine Point Films about the rise of Portaferry musician Ryan McMullan will debut at the 33rd Galway Film Festival on Saturday. For tickets: LINK.

Other Stories this week

  • The DUP’s Richard Bullick has been reappointed as Special Adviser to the First Minister following a four-year absence.

  • Suzanne Lynch announced she will soon be leaving her role as Washington Correspondent for the Irish Times and will join Politico Europe.

  • AIB has announced it will close eight of its Northern Ireland branches in November.

  • Walk-in vaccine clinics have been opened across Northern Ireland in an effort to increase Covid-19 vaccine take-up among young people aged over 18. Over 1,000 new Covid-19 cases were reported yesterday, the highest number in a 24-hour period since January.

  • An independent review has urged the UK Government to levy a £3 billion sugar and salt tax to tackle obesity and climate change. The National Food Strategy states that consumption of High Fat Salt and Sugar (HFSS) foods must fall by 25% in the next 10 years and that healthy eating initiatives be extended.

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