Animal Health Certificates

Ever since we got a dog we've taken it with us on holiday every year. Unfortunately Boris Johnson's approach to Brexit specifically tore up things like Pet Passports and so Animal Health Certificates (AHC) were brought in. This basically means you have to go to a vet some days before you travel to get a certificate to show it is healthy and vaccinated, a 15-20 minute job.

Unfortunately my local vet, like many others i suspect, seized this opportunity for profiteering. The charged £160 for this in 2021 and have increased the charge between 11% and 20% every year since ! The form hasn't changed, the amount of time to fill it in hasn't changed, the dog hasn't changed. 

For reference the national rate of interest in the same time has not increase beyond 5%, mostly it has been below that. 

I suppose these vets are exploiting our Trust and preference for convenience. Well next year, finally, i'll be less lazy and find an alternative supplier. In the mean time i'll make a complaint, i doubt it will do much good but i find it frustrating when other people complain like this without taking action. 

Anyway another 'Benefit of Brexit', thanks Nigel and Boris !.  

 

Clacton voter explains why he voted for Brexit

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hVtBxbgpB1k 

@4.37 "Do you know why i voted Brexit, cos all we got told is that the European Union is costing the NHS millions and millions of pounds a week". This is what happens when you get your news through Facebook and JD Wetherspons people. This guy is so confused he can't even remember the lie that was on the side of the bus. A saving grace is that he seems to realise what he was told was a lie, even if he can't remember it.

 

Back during the referendum the Vote Leave campaign drove a bus around stating that 'We send £350 a week to the EU, why not give it to the NHS instead'. This is was a lie. Firstly it was talking about gross payments, not net (after removing what the EU sends back in subsides). Secondly it assumes that of the gross amount would not instead be spend at home directly on the people that were getting those subsidies, or that the government would just divert the monies else.

Therefore the guy is totally confused as to what the pledge was or what it meant. But at least he seems to understand that Nigel Farage (and all his kind) lied to him. Even so in the same video you have people saying that will still vote Nigel during his latest stunt, even when there is the delicious opportunity to vote for Count Binface instead. 

 

Applying for an Irish passport - part ten - Irish passport and ID card recieved

A bit of a late update on this subject but...

In October 2018 I started applying for an Irish passport which concluded in June 2020. (18 months, £450 and a wedge of paperwork). I am now an Irish (and again an EU) citizen with a paper passport and a plastic ID card/passport.

Since doing this some of my siblings have also put themselves on the Irish birth register meaning that they can apply for a passport in future should they choose.

Overall the exercise was worthwhile and has put my back in touch with a part of my own genealogy i suppose. My UK passport expired just before my Irish one arrived and so i don't even have a UK one now.

...

At the time of writing things are getting better on the Brexit front but only slowly. We hit rock bottom under Johnson, Truss and Sunak. Sunak improved one small aspect related to Northern Ireland before the Conservatives were finally kicked out by the ballet box.

Although i have never been a Labour voter i feel that our new PM Keir Starmer is at least an honest and competent person who will try to fix some of the things that are broken in this country. Some of these have been broken all my life such as a the amount of housing that is (not) built every year.

Unfortunately when it comes to undoing the damage of Brexit he seems to feel that he needs to go very slowly indeed. Whilst i under some of the political analysis behind this it is very frustrating. We can't begin to fix the problems that have been created until, we the public, have regular honest updates about the damage that has been done. This in turn will create a feedback loop where opposition parties will need to concede that Brexit was a bad idea, i.e. the conservatives will need to own this.

Until the EU see that we, collectively, want to be back in then i don't think they would entertain the idea.

Why this is so important is perhaps something i'll go into in another post.

Travelling to the EU with a pet post Brexit (RIP pet passports)

 I've just come back from a 3 week holiday in Spain where i drive through France both outwards and on the return. This is the first time i took a pet with me and since i have never had a 'pet passport' (PP) before i had to go through the new route of a 'Animal Health Certificate' (AHC), another negative consequence of Brexit of course. Where once you would of got a PP and used that to show all relevant checks and vaccinations had been given for any trip; you now need to get a AHC created by your vet for every single trip. i.e. If i wanted to go to Europe again next week i would need a brand new AHC at ~£135 every time.

Anyway in travelling through France and especially during Covid i made sure we had everything we needed, trickey enough when some of the travel rules where changing near daily. For the UK vet this was the first time she had filled out such a form.

In calling Eurotunnel though a couple of days before return to change a minor item on the booking the emmployee briefly mentioned to make sure we had a tapeworm certificate for the return. After a bit of research it turned out this was something i needed to do whilst on holiday. We found a vet an hour away and managed to get a certificate and treatment from them before the Siesta time. The Spanush vet had also not had to deal with an AHC before and wanted to update our non-existant PP, she issued a certificate in the form of a Spanish AHC.

However on getting to EuroTunnel they rejected this on the basis that it wasn't written on the AHC form and that the Spanish AHC couldn't be accetped. They diverted me to a nearby vet who simply wrote in the confirmation details from the Spanish form onto the UK form and prompted charged me €50 for the privaledge. Its not their fault.

None of this would have been necessary if not for the lies told before, during and after Brexit. This is a minor example of the damage being done to the UK but its a personal example and a warning for anyone taking a pet abroad.

Part nine - Passport application sent

The landslide win of the Tory's in the election knocked the sails out of many people, i was just one. I couldn't bring myself to watch the victory speeches and just tried to tune out. The government now is openly hiring all manner of spin doctors and recently effectively sacked the Chancellor because he wouldn't accept to just be a puppet of the central spin machine.
I was prompted this week by family to see what the status of my application and that spurred me into completing the last part. Whilst i always wanted to gain FBR status as a contingency against Brexit taking away my visa free travel, and partly as a small signal that i am against this whole craziness, right now we are in 'transition' and so the new passport was strictly needed. In any case Covid-19 has caused many events to be cancelled including over seas travel in the case of my company, never the less i continued to complete this.
Today i posted the complete application package for a passport and a plastic ID card (€115) not including postage. I'd expect to get the passport itself in a couple of weeks, we'll see.

We live in a very dangerous time for democracy with the Government very carefully controlling the publics perception of everything and only delivering constant feed lines that the public can repeat ad naseum. This is only made worse by foreign powers also using social media and fake news to manipulate the voter. Hopefully this will be resolved one day but i have no idea how.

Applying for an Irish passport - Part eight - Foregin birth certificate received

This week i received the official certificate along with all my paperwork and a passport application form. Right now the UK has a general election only days away and if the Tory's win a majority they will unfortunately execute some bodged up Brexit straight away. Unfortunately the leader of Labour is a nutcase and so be storming home but his combination of marxism and racism means many can't vote for a party led by him.
Our best hope right now is that no party wins a majority and parliment is willing and able to continue pushing for a properly informed referendum.
Unfortunately there are many head winds here:
- Direct Messaging via Social media is still not regulated. Therefore this can still be used to messages to individuals which would not stand up to scrutiny.
- Various state actors are still manipulating our democracy and since it is politically expedidant the government seems to be withholding a report which says just that.
- Voter fatigue appears to have set in with the subject of Brexit and people was want to 'get it done'. However we know that even if you pass the 'withdrawl has started' stage it will be far from done at that point.
 Its also become more evident that Trump is in Putin's pocket.

Again think about who stands to gain from all this Chaos, Putin and Trump.

Applying for an Irish passport - part seven - Application accepted

On Friday 15th November i recieved an email from the Irish Department for Foriegn Affairs (DFA) saying that my application was due to be accepted and i just needed to re-confirm my address for posting back the documents. So far the process has taken 1 year and 1 month. I'd expect to get the status this month which then means i have the option to apply for a passport in the future if i so desire.
Actually this weekendi have a work trip to Italy and this highlights the need for free and simply access to our neighbouring countries.

For historical reference Brexit has changed alot and not very much. Boris Johnson negotiated a new version of the deal which puts N Ireland in a different customs status, however he couldn't pass that through Parliment and so they have all agreed to (or been bounced into) an election on 12th December. Its unclear what will happen in this election for several reasons:
a) The unregulated direct targetting of messages via social media by Leave via Facebook using Cambridge Analytica and Analytics IQ funded by a US billionaire has been exposed and blocked.
b) Twitter has annouced it will no longer allow political ads, however
c) Social media is still vulnerable to the unofficial political messages that are even less accountable and forwarded around between believers which re-enforce their perception 'its the truth'.
d) There is still no clear leader for Remain, no unifying message. Even politicians that have changed their minds will find it difficult to slow the inertia of years of the other side controlling the message
e) British mentality (or the 'bulldog spirit) to just 'get it done' regardless of whether it, on reflection, is a good thing.

At least the Lib Dems are now clear that if they win (outright) they will simply revoke article 50. However the I can hope for now is that the election does not deliver an outright majority for Boris or allow him to create an unholy alliance with Nigel. This could mean we get a more informed referendum and one that is not rushed through. However all of the above points would likely still apply.
 Just remember who stands to benefit from a weakened UK and EU. Putin and Trump.

Applying for an Irish passport - part six - Forgeign Birth application submitted

I have now submitted my FBR application to the Irish government with the ETA for review between 6-12 months. Its unknown how long this could really take because whilst i've been deligent in dotting the i's and crossing the t's its clear they have a surge of applications and no incentive to expedite the process.
It took me nearly four months to get to this point including phone calls, letters, ordering documents, translating documents, getting lawyer colleagues to notarise documents etc. Also it has cost ~£400 just to get to this stage and none of my children can benefit from this to Irish law (I would have had to have done this before they were born).

For historical reference its still unclear at this time which way Brexit will go. The PM seems to have control of the time table and is running out the clock to force the MPs into accepting whatever comprises the EU give us or No Deal. People should remember that even if the EU does concede on the backstop then they have essential won the negoatitions. They set the 'frame work' at the beginning which meant that if any of their red lines were not agreed then the process stopped. The main reason i voted remain was because i didn't think we could ever do well in such negotiations and i think i've been vindicated, a hollow victory of course.

Finally if anyone wants to understand how we got where we are then i recommend watching Brexit-the-uncivil-war on Channel 4. I fear that even if we had a second vote, and such tatics were no longer available, you still cannot reset the lies people have been told and more importantly the opinions they have formed because of them. We have many great values as britons but one aspect we do have is the ability to put our heads down and get the shoulder to the wheel in face of all opposition. i.e. People will stand by the position they have taken even if they secretly know its wrong, they can be intransigent.
Just listen to what some people say to opinion shows and you'll hear that most of the specific examples of reasons for Brexit are actually problems created by our own sucessive governments.

EHIC and Brexit (an open letter)

(I've just sent this email to the feedback address for the NHS EHIC process. #peoplesvote)

 

To whom it may concern,

I have just renewed my son's EHIC and found the process quick and painless which is good.

However I note that the letter which accompanies the new card does not mention the risks associated with Brexit at all. i.e Despite the printed expiry date on this card, it would presumably become totally defunct in the event of a No Deal scenario.

Whilst i can assume this is because the situation is rapidly evolving i think its important that all card holders are reminded on all possible occasions about such risks, especially as you come to rely on them.

I know my sons have needed medical treatment abroad in the past and having (or not on one occasion) this card in my possession made a significant difference in gaining access to treatment.

regards,

<Name supplied>

Applying for an Irish passport - part five

Alot has happened in the Brexit debate, even to summarise it here would take a long time. Right now the commonsn vote has been deferred into January. This seems to be a ploy to 'run out the clock' so that MPs are forced to chose between the 'negotiated' deal or no deal. To have a #peoplesvote there would need to be a law passed and there would be little or time to do that.
If it were a binary choice as implied then i would vote for no deal and take the hit, the 'deal' that has been negotiated is a trap which just defers the pain until a year or two later. Whenever we would leave we'd end up taking the blame for anything that happens including political violence.
All we can hope for today is that when the MPs do vote, they vote it down which in turn somehow leads to rescinding Article 50 or extending it. Again i could imagine extending would be the default option because it probably doesn't require a law to be passed and 'kicks the can down the road' (as any committee tends to do when faced with opposing views of the future).
I've supported the #peoplesvote campaign in a few small ways including posting leaflets to let people know what it is. I really like the way the campaign doesn't have any strong political views other than we need to have a vote because we've all learnt alot more. Lets hope it works.
Finally the EU itself has recommended that in the even of a No Deal there should be a period of Visa free travel, who knows how effective that would be. In any case, even if this whole process were cancelled i would be glad to be working on this project

Just before Christmas:
- I've recieved my grandfathers 'late registration of birth'
- I've recieved his new birth certificate

This means that I or my siblings can now in turn apply for our own late registration and then subsequently a passport.

Applying for an Irish passport - part four

Brexit is going terribly, I'm personally a bit torn here when i think of the politics behind it. Recently it looked like there was momentum towards a second vote but at this time it doesn't seem likely. The truth, as i see it, is that the MPs simply don't have the backbone to do the right thing here, even when there is an apparent opportunity. More over it is we the people that should carry a large chunk of the blame too, do we protest ? Are the protests getting bigger every day ? Where are big voices calling for a change ? How comes the Lib Dems (the only party against this process) aren't really gaining support ?

Who knows ... anyway my paper journey continues.

• Previous birth certificates returned and refunded
• New baptism certificate received
• Late registration of birth form sent

In order to process the form they will need to look into my Great Grandparents births, marriages and deaths too (our documented family history doesn't go back that far).
If this part succeeds then i can apply for a copy of his birth certificate and then onwards.

Applying for an Irish passport - part three

Latest update:

• The Irish General Registration Office actually believe his birth was probably registered and the certificate i have is him. However since he was registered very late and there was a fine for doing this, many people gave false dates intentionally. In these cases they trust the baptismal certificate
• However the baptism certificate has really degraded over the last 100 years, so guess what, i need to apply for a new one of these too
• There is a positive benefit to this though, it does mean that mum won't need to send her original baptism certificate in order for me to get the birth certificate.

Applying for an Irish passport - The journey begins

If you've read my last post then you'll know some of the motivations for why i now need to start this lengthy process.

Like most people in Britain i have a mixed descent from the various nations that make up our shared history. My maternal grandfather was from Ireland and their laws this means that i am eligible to gain an Irish passport. As you may have seen many countries have seen significant increase in interest and applications for passports from UK citizens who may be entitled and realise want this would mean to their travel prospects.

So i've started to look into exercising this option and as you may guess, they haven't made it easy. Initially when i looked into this there were some generic messages about how this wasn't necessary because the various governments don't intend their to be problems. But its become clearer as time went on that that was pie in the sky.

So what do you need to do. Well in my case i need to prove the whole chain of entitlement that means:

1. Grandfather’s birth certificate (+notarised photocopy)
2. Grandfather’s marriage certificate (+notarised photocopy)
3. Grandfather’s death certificate (+notarised photocopy)
4. Mum’s birth certificate (+notarised photocopy)
5. Mum’s marriage certificate (+notarised photocopy)
6. My birth certificate (+notarised photocopy)
7. My marriage certificate (+notarised photocopy)
8. Certified/Notarised copy of the photograph page of current passport or state issued identity document (e.g. Driver's Licence)
9. Certified/Notarised copy of the photograph page of current passport or state issued identity document (e.g. Driver's Licence)
10. 2 x Proof of residence
11. 2 x Notarised passport photos
12. Notarised application form

So 14 different documents plus 7 notarised copies.

Then there is the costs. My family does have some of the originals needed for these applications but are hesitant to send them away in case they get lost in the process. So i've applied for duplicates alongside the main fees involved:

1. duplicate of Grandfather's birth cert €42 total.
2. duplicate of Grandfather's marriage certificate £9.25
3. duplicate of Grandfather's death certificate £9.25.
4. duplicate of mother's birth certificate £9.25
5. duplicate of parent's marriage certificate for mum and dad £9.25
6. official translation of my marriage certificate TBC
7. Foreign birth app fee is €278
8. Passport app fee is €80

5      TOTAL so far approx. £352 not including photocopies, translation fees and postage fees

There are benefits to this process though. I've learned alot about our family history in the process.

Anyway the process is ongoing. The latest is that it turns out my grandfather wasn't registered and this seemed to be an optional process over a hundred years ago so now i am following the so called 'late registration process' to register him over hundred years after his birth and many decades since his death. however to apply for this i will need to send the original copy of his baptism certificate, which we do have but are not keen on sending.

So lets just say this process is anything but (deliberately not?) cheap and easy. I'm impressed by the public records that exist and, dare i say it, both the UK and Irish Government websites which help you to find what you need to do.

Some useful links for anyone mad enough to try this:
http://www.citizensinformation.ie/en/moving_country/irish_citizenship/irish_citizenship_through_birth_or_descent.html
http://www.inis.gov.ie/en/INIS/Pages/citizenship-grandparent-born-ireland
https://www.dfa.ie/passports-citizenship/citizenship/born-abroad/registering-a-foreign-birth/
https://www.dfa.ie/irish-embassy/great-britain/passports/how-to-apply-for-a-passport/
http://lifeevents.hse.ie/
https://www.gro.gov.uk/gro/content/certificates/Login.asp
https://www.freebmd.org.uk

 

One word of warning, there are websites out that will charge you over the odds for certificates. Use the links above for the official sites.

Applying for an Irish Passport - The background (Or 'The reason i voted Remain was because i could see this mess coming')

Whatever you think about Brexit it is certain that things will never be the same again. If you voted for Brexit then you'll be able to blame all the negative ramifications on the EU itself, on the Government, or whoever takes you fancy, if you voted to remain then you'll know who to blame but won't be able to express it for fear of being shouted down.

I for one concluded at the time of the referendum that leaving would be bad because, i reasoned, it wasn't possible for 1 country to negotiate with 27 and 'get a good deal', they hold all the cards. It also has a rather profound impact on my family as my wife is from a EU country and our children have dual nationality, this as you can imagine has all kinds of potential impacts, the obvious being travel.
And finally my job role requires me to travel to Europe on short notice, anyone who thinks travel will be unaffected is simply naive.

That said i blame the 'silent majority' more than those who voted Brexit. In fact i blame two people more than them:
#1 is Tony Blair. His decision not to limit the initial immigration from ascending countries (when all other countries did) did alot to create the problems and perceived problems with have with immigration. Also the way he and his wife implemented and profited from the human rights legislation also caused so many people to feel that Europe is something that is done TO us rather than FOR us.
#2 is David Cameron. His arrogance and naivety almost lost the United Kingdom itself on one referendum but did he learn from it ? Did this cause him to think he should be more cautious in future ? He correctly setup the referendum itself as legally only 'advisory' but then sold it to everyone as if it wasn't. He also continued the trend of blaming the EU for problems that he could of resolved with domestic legislation. Also the referendum itself should have been a qualified majority, deciding such a big issue (and one that turned out to have Fake News manipulation to boot) on the basis of simple majority was madness. Ireland was allowed to vote three times on the EU constitution but for some reason if we voted again that would be 'undemocratic'.

Finally it seems that a referendum so framed was always a bad idea. Its always easier to shout down a reasoned argument for something with angry rants and slogans, especially those targeted at your pre-disposed biases.

The other thing that annoys me about this whole process is that for some reason you can't just vote remain because you think leaving would make a big mess. You need to drape yourself in one flag or another. The thing that scares me the most is that the more i listen to James O'Brien the more he seems to be right on some things.

So now that's off my chest see the next post for what i have to do next....