{"id":38486,"date":"2019-01-14T12:55:21","date_gmt":"2019-01-14T12:55:21","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/?p=38486"},"modified":"2019-01-15T15:21:11","modified_gmt":"2019-01-15T15:21:11","slug":"stokes-potteries-backed-remain-now-want-mays-deal-reshape-climate-policy","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.climatechangenews.com\/2019\/01\/14\/stokes-potteries-backed-remain-now-want-mays-deal-reshape-climate-policy\/","title":{"rendered":"Stoke\u2019s potteries backed remain, now they want May’s deal to reshape climate policy"},"content":{"rendered":"

In the \u2018Brexit capital of Britain\u2019, the town\u2019s most famous industry never wanted to leave the EU.<\/strong><\/p>\n

A crash-out\u00a0departure on 29 March threatens to throw up trade tariffs, border delays\u00a0and higher pollution charges\u00a0for the British ceramics manufacturers\u00a0clustered around Stoke-on-Trent, which sell more than half their exports to the European Union.<\/p>\n

In the hopes of avoiding those pitfalls, the British Ceramic Confederation (Ceramfed)\u00a0has been\u00a0urging MPs<\/a> to approve prime minister Theresa May\u2019s contentious\u00a0withdrawal agreement<\/a> when they vote on Tuesday.<\/p>\n

This, it says,\u00a0ensures\u00a0as soft and predictable a Brexit as possible.<\/p>\n

On Monday May\u00a0backed\u00a0their call in person,\u00a0giving a speech to factory workers in\u00a0Stoke-on-Trent – with china bowls stacked behind her –\u00a0to drum up support for a deal\u00a0that appears headed for defeat. Not backing the deal, she warned, could lead to no Brexit at all.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe deal that the UK government has proposed and has been accepted by Europe is the one we want to see going forward,\u201d said Michael McGowan, quality, environmental and energy manager at Ibstock Brick. \u201cWe think it will bring economic stability to the UK this year, whereas at the moment it\u2019s just creating instability and uncertainty for business.\u201d<\/p>\n

The government also tried to ply the West Midlands city\u00a0last week. Stoke Central MP Gareth Snell was among the Labour members who met May to discuss how she could change the deal to\u00a0win their votes, and trade minister George Hollingbery visited\u00a0ceramics industry representatives to talk about future trade opportunities.<\/p>\n

Seven EU nations<\/strong> miss climate and energy plan deadline<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

If the withdrawal agreement is approved, the ceramics industry even sees a potential upside for its energy-intensive businesses: the chance to replace the EU\u2019s emissions trading system (ETS) with a carbon price\u00a0that is more supportive and less punitive to emitters.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe see Brexit as a good opportunity to simplify the current approach to decarbonisation,\u201d said Andrew McDermott, technical director at Ceramfed, which is based in Stoke-on-Trent. \u201cThere are a lot of overlapping schemes and a lot of complexity, and there are opportunities to have more of an emphasis on support rather than the threat of penalty to drive change. We want more carrot, less stick.\u201d<\/p>\n

That, however, requires a gradual withdrawal, once the current ETS trading period ends after 2020. An abrupt no-deal departure, on the other hand, would jack up environmental costs, including through a new carbon tax, and disrupt exports of pottery and imports of raw materials.<\/p>\n

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Our member @HeraldicPottery<\/a> show around Trade Minister @GHollingbery with local MP Jack Brereton. Here they look at some of the company\u2019s cutting edge designs pic.twitter.com\/0AuUIDAAlc<\/a><\/p>\n

— British Ceramic Confederation (@ceramfed) January 7, 2019<\/a><\/p><\/blockquote>\n