Pulse.Assent

The Governments of France, Italy, the United Kingdom, and the United States, recalling their statement of 27 June 2018, welcome the announcement that Libya’s National Oil Corporation is resuming its vital work on behalf of all Libyans. We commend the legitimate National Oil Corporation as it repairs infrastructure, honors its contractual obligations, and, having lifted the state of emergency provisions in eastern Libya, restores oil exports and production critical to Libya’s prosperity. We also appreciate the LNA’s contributions to restore stability in Libya’s oil sector, which is critical to Libya’s national interest.

Libya’s oil facilities, production, and revenues belong to the Libyan people. We reiterate that the National Oil Corporation must be allowed to work on behalf of all Libyans and that Libya’s oil resources must remain under the exclusive control of the legitimate National Oil Corporation and the sole oversight of the Government of National Accord (GNA), as outlined in UN Security Council Resolutions 2259 (2015), 2278 (2016), and 2362 (2017).

Now is the time for all Libyan players to move forward with a Libyan-owned discussion about how to improve fiscal transparency, strengthen economic institutions, and ensure just distribution of the country’s resources, within the framework of the Plan of Action formulated by UN Special Representative Ghassan Salameh and on the basis of the Libyan Political Agreement, endorsed by the UN Security Council through resolution 2259 (2015). In this regard, we welcome the proposal of the President of the Presidency Council to move forward with enhanced transparency of Libyan economic institutions. More broadly, we call on Libya’s leaders to seize this important opportunity, within the framework of the Libyan Political Agreement, to resolve differences over the Central Bank of Libya, enhance dialogue on the distribution of resources through the national budget, and work toward the unification of the Central Bank of Libya and the dissolution of parallel institutions, as agreed in the May 29 joint statement in Paris.

We also stand in solidarity with Libya’s leaders as they work toward an inclusive Libyan owned political process that will lead to credible, peaceful and well-prepared national elections as soon as possible.

The Governments of France, Italy, the United Kingdom, and the United States pledge to support Libyan leaders in pursuing these measures and will use all tools at our disposal to hold accountable those who undermine Libya’s peace, security, and stability.

Further information

• Follow the Foreign Office on Twitter @foreignoffice and Facebook
• Follow the Foreign Office on Instagram, YouTube and LinkedIn

During his visit to Washington he will meet with senior US policymakers working on the Middle East and North Africa, including members of the House and Senate Foreign Affairs and Relations Committees. Mr Burt will also participate in a meeting with the House Foreign Affairs Committee alongside Ambassadors from Germany and France on Iran and wider Middle East issues.

In Riyadh, Mr Burt will meet with Ministers from the Saudi Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Secretary-General of the Gulf Cooperation Council and the Foreign Minister of Yemen.

Speaking ahead of the visit, Mr Burt said:

As the President of the United States makes his first official visit to the UK, my meetings in Washington are emblematic of the of the breadth and depth of the cooperation between our two countries, not least on Middle East and North Africa issues. Over the last few months we have worked together both bilaterally and through international organisations to address the situations in Syria and Yemen, our troops continue to fight together against the scourge of Daesh, and our aid organisations cooperate at every level.

In Riyadh I will be discussing the full range of issues impacting the Middle East region, both with my Saudi counterparts and with the Foreign Minister of Yemen. Together we will reinforce that there can be no military solution to the crisis in Yemen, and we will discuss how best to work with UN Special Envoy Martin Griffiths to achieve a political solution.

Further information

• Follow the Alistair Burt on Twitter @AlistairBurtUK
• Follow the Foreign Office on Twitter @foreignoffice and Facebook
• Follow the Foreign Office on Instagram, YouTube and LinkedIn

A major simplification of the way we regulate farming has been proposed in an interim report published today by Dame Glenys Stacey, Chair of the Farm Inspection and Regulation Review.

The interim report sets out the problems with the current system of regulation, largely borne out of the requirements of membership of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP). It finds that farmers and regulators alike are exasperated by the demands of regulation, which are unduly precise and inflexible. As we leave the EU, there is an opportunity to rebuild trust between the regulating authority and the farmer, which would maintain high standard on farms and support farmers to comply.

The way we regulate now exasperates responsible farmers and regulators alike. Some of our regulations are unduly precise and inflexible. Tightly-drawn European regulation can have adverse consequences for farm businesses and lead to a lack of transparency in the food chain. It inevitably sours relationships between the farmer and the regulatory authority. Inflexible regulation can lead farmers to hide their mistakes and naturally, that undermines any trust between the regulating authority and the farmer.

The Review estimates 150,000 farm inspections are carried out each year by multiple agencies such as the Rural Payments Agency, the Animal and Plant Health Agency, Natural England and local authorities to meet the strict criteria of the EU’s Common Agricultural Policy.

The report discusses the opportunity to use a single field force to conduct more meaningful farm inspections, as part of a more flexible, proportionate regulation. A simpler and more targeted regulatory system would be an immensely powerful tool in achieving the government’s environmental objectives and supporting farmers to uphold standards.

Farming legislation has evolved and accreted in a piecemeal way over many years. Farmers face an unduly extensive and complex array of regulatory requirements. Some of those requirements seem illogical as well as inflexible, bringing farming regulation into disrepute.

The interim report also recommends better use of technology such as satellite imagery to check compliance. This could maximise the information gathered ahead of any inspection to support comprehensive visits for farmers and regulators alike. The Review is due to complete its work by the end of this year and will publish a final report with recommendations.

Dame Glenys Stacey, Chair of the Farm Inspection and Regulation Review said:

Farmers have long been frustrated by the way farms are regulated. As we leave the EU and as government sets out new expectations for farming, we have a unique opportunity to transform the way we do things.

This interim report sets out a direction of travel for farming regulation. We do not suggest piecemeal adjustments. Instead we think more radical change is necessary, to make the most of the opportunity we have now, and to best enable farmers to produce and market food while also meeting the other expectations government has of farming.

I do encourage all farmers and land managers who are frustrated with regulation, but resigned to how things are, to read our report and to think that things could be and should be different.

Secretary of State Michael Gove said:

Dame Glenys makes a thorough and compelling case for fundamental changes to the existing inspection and regulation framework. The regulation on farmers under the CAP has imposed an extra bureaucratic headache on farmers, with no room to recognise innovation or good intent.

The interim findings of this independent report will be a key consideration in the plans for our future Environmental Land Management Scheme, for which an effective regulatory regime is crucial. This will work to enhance the excellent work farmers to do manage and protect the environment.

The independent review was announced in February to simplify the way farmers and landowners are regulated as we leave the EU. The strict requirements of the CAP mean that many inspectors are currently not able to use discretion or exercise their own judgment.