Moving away from sausages, I've noticed that in Tesco's*, at least, there appears to be a dearth of cod. Much of the fish section is given over to haddock and mackerel (no problem as far as I'm concerned - I like both), but where are the battered cod fillets, or cod-and-cheese fishcakes?
Doubtless the post-Brexit Happy British Cod are happy because they're not being caught, or something...
(*It's a smallish branch, although not one of the little Tesco Express places you find next to a petrol station.).
The reason there's so much haddock is because the British fishermen aren't selling it to us anymore. It's become much harder to find on this side of the Channel.
They're OUR Sovereign Happy British Haddock, and you shan't have any!
So there!
Still, everything's under control, now that Lord Frost has his Union Jack socks. That sort of attention to detail cannot help but pay off, in the long run.
Sorry to double-post, but I've just come across this comment in the Grauniad:
One of the classiest statements at the whole G7 came from Ursula von der Leyen: “the Brexit agreement was written in English so they could understand it” ...
No chilled meat can enter the Single Market under any circumstances, is my understanding, so such staple, cultural, symbolic British food cannot enter British Northern Ireland.
Unionists don't like that. At all. With a long, hot, Orange summer looming.
Hmmmm. Is Norn Iron British? 't'ain't part of Great Britain. UKish?
No chilled meat can enter the Single Market under any circumstances, is my understanding, so such staple, cultural, symbolic British food cannot enter British Northern Ireland.
Unionists don't like that. At all. With a long, hot, Orange summer looming.
Hmmmm. Is Norn Iron British? 't'ain't part of Great Britain. UKish?
It can be confusing. The two largest of the British Isles are Great Britain and Ireland. Great Britain is basically the name of the island which comprises Wales, Scotland and England. So the United Kingdom - more or less since 1921 - is 'Great Britain and Northern Ireland'. Northern Ireland is very UK-ish indeed, totally British in terms of sovereign citizenship, as well as dual Irish from the (Republic of) Ireland's point of view.
Hmmmm. Is Norn Iron British? 't'ain't part of Great Britain. UKish?
"British" is the common adjective used to pertain to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Because "UKish" doesn't sound like a word.
You might recall the recent discussion we had about "American" and "USian".
It's rare for someone to use "British" to refer to the island of Great Britain.
Hmmmm. Is Norn Iron British? 't'ain't part of Great Britain. UKish?
"British" is the common adjective used to pertain to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Because "UKish" doesn't sound like a word.
You might recall the recent discussion we had about "American" and "USian".
It's rare for someone to use "British" to refer to the island of Great Britain.
And using "British" to refer to the whole archipelago (as in "British Isles") is considered fighting words in most of the island of Ireland. I seem to recall that UK-Ireland treaties refer to "these islands".
Of course, the word doesn't exist, so it's not pronounced at all. But if it was, wouldn't it be 'You-kish'? That is, the full 'U' of 'UK', but losing the 'a' part of the 'K' in favour of 'ish'.
Of course, the word doesn't exist, so it's not pronounced at all. But if it was, wouldn't it be 'You-kish'? That is, the full 'U' of 'UK', but losing the 'a' part of the 'K' in favour of 'ish'.
UK exists, and is pronounced "youkay" everywhere I'm aware of it being used. I think anybody trying to pronounce "UKish" would pronounce it "youkayish" as @Gee D suggests, but I'm surprised to here that "UKish" is in such widespread use in @Gee D's circles that it could be said to have a "standard pronunciation".
Similarly, I've never actually spoken the word "USian", which we learn is popular in at least some Canadian circles, but it wouldn't occur to me to pronounce it any way other than you-essian were I to try.
Wow she really was funny - very clever and - I don't mean to be patronising but to be funny in a foreign language takes some doing! Thank you for sharing!
Why, Ms Surgical Appliance Truss, our Beloved Trade Minister, is even now negotiating wonderful deals with such major world powers as LaLaLand, Ultima Thule, Ruritania, Mordor...the list goes ever on and on.
Unicorns from LaLaLand, ready-made ice cubes (for Gin) from Ultima Thule, royal family lookalikes from Ruritania, fruit-picking Orcs from Mordor - all the essentials that a Global Britain needs...
(For the avoidance of doubt, this is satire. Mind you, we may well be in need of the fruit-picking Orcs this year...)
Why, Ms Surgical Appliance Truss, our Beloved Trade Minister, is even now negotiating wonderful deals with such major world powers as LaLaLand, Ultima Thule, Ruritania, Mordor...the list goes ever on and on.
Unicorns from LaLaLand, ready-made ice cubes (for Gin) from Ultima Thule, royal family lookalikes from Ruritania, fruit-picking Orcs from Mordor - all the essentials that a Global Britain needs...
(For the avoidance of doubt, this is satire. Mind you, we may well be in need of the fruit-picking Orcs this year...)
Yes because Hobbits are too small. Where’s my coat
I notice, unpacking the shopping, that the apples were from New Zealand, the grapes from Egypt and the satsumas from Peru. Didn't we used to buy stuff from Europe?
Grapes from Egypt were a thing before Brexit, as were apples from New Zealand. I remember that New Zealand apples at this time of year predate our entry into the EU along with South African fruit.
Peru has been a source of blueberries, French beans and a load of other fruit and vegetables since before Brexit, and blueberries from Morocco.
What I'm noticing is gaps on shelves when I go in store, and things not available - currently Tesco has no own brand wholemeal pitta bread just Warburtons at over twice the price and double the additives. (Sorry, that comes from the advertising slogan: Warburtons, bread with nowt taken out ... but a whole lot of extras added.) M&S has no gluten free pitta bread and hasn't had any for weeks.
Waitrose here has been short of coconut milk for about 2 months and I’m guessing that might be due to problems with shipping in China as it is sourced from Thailand. There have been ongoing shipping delays of all sorts of goods from China since the pandemic began due to shortage of containers/ships being in the wrong locations, and possibly outbreaks of covid. This has a knock on effect with other shipping around the world.
The library where I volunteer is waiting for large print books we have ordered, and even more traumatic, my birthday present from Chicago hasn't arrived yet. Both are due to shipping problems or fewer planes coming to NZ affecting airmail deliveries.
Shipping problems can occur anywhere and at any time - witness the hold-ups caused by *Big Boat Stuck* in the Suez Canal a while back!
This is anecdotal, to say the least, but the massive decrease in trade between England and Europe does seem to have reduced the amount of lorry traffic on the M2 motorway to Dover (which is visible from the place where my Ark is moored).
I've also not heard or seen much about the rather vexed subject of large swathes of Kent being taken up by enormous lorry parks, some of which at least were being laid down very quickly with precious little, if any, local consultation. The predicted massive queues of lorries, with drivers pooing on the grass verges, haven't AFAIK materialised.
OTOH, I hear that hauliers in Ireland are using direct ferry services to France, in order to get round the awkward object that is England...
Still, there's all those luscious trade deals pending, with countries no-one's ever heard of.
EE reintroduces roaming charges for UK users in Europe. No point switching, the others will follow.
Although if enough people switch, the mobile phone companies might sit up and take notice (EE - for loss of trade, everyone else - for unexpectedly gained business).
Twitter yesterday was chuntering that the roaming charges were something that were cited as "Project Fear" by "Remoaners", as counter-challenged by the Leave campaign. There was also a lot of pointing out how much of Project Fear is now fact. Along with this story from ITV (link) that we are weeks away from gaps on supermarket shelves. In my experience we are already there.
Frost admitted that campaigners for Vote Leave did not anticipate the impact Brexit would have on relations with the countries Boris Johnson consistently refers to as “our friends and neighbours”.
“I don’t think those who campaigned five years ago for Brexit drove the analysis, drove the politics of it. I think they are surprised, quite often, to find relations are in the state they’re in,” said Frost.
Asked if the British government had “underestimated what sort of impact” the protocol would have on the movement of goods, Frost hinted this was the case.
A fairly large local Co-Op was completely empty of Milk yesterday, though I assumed it was due to a shortage of Cows (or possibly Eastern European Milkmaids?).
A fairly large local Co-Op was completely empty of Milk yesterday,
I suspect it's not unlikely that some milk shortages could be caused by the NI situation. As I understand it, pre-Brexit 15-20% of UK's dairy products were coming in from France and Ireland (with the latter being the larger source).
Whether that's the cause of your local shortage, who can tell.
Comments
Doubtless the post-Brexit Happy British Cod are happy because they're not being caught, or something...
(*It's a smallish branch, although not one of the little Tesco Express places you find next to a petrol station.).
So there!
Still, everything's under control, now that Lord Frost has his Union Jack socks. That sort of attention to detail cannot help but pay off, in the long run.
One of the classiest statements at the whole G7 came from Ursula von der Leyen: “the Brexit agreement was written in English so they could understand it” ...
Ohhhh no it isn't. Or is that Panto?
Hmmmm. Is Norn Iron British? 't'ain't part of Great Britain. UKish?
It can be confusing. The two largest of the British Isles are Great Britain and Ireland. Great Britain is basically the name of the island which comprises Wales, Scotland and England. So the United Kingdom - more or less since 1921 - is 'Great Britain and Northern Ireland'. Northern Ireland is very UK-ish indeed, totally British in terms of sovereign citizenship, as well as dual Irish from the (Republic of) Ireland's point of view.
"British" is the common adjective used to pertain to the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Because "UKish" doesn't sound like a word.
You might recall the recent discussion we had about "American" and "USian".
It's rare for someone to use "British" to refer to the island of Great Britain.
And using "British" to refer to the whole archipelago (as in "British Isles") is considered fighting words in most of the island of Ireland. I seem to recall that UK-Ireland treaties refer to "these islands".
Of course, the word doesn't exist, so it's not pronounced at all. But if it was, wouldn't it be 'You-kish'? That is, the full 'U' of 'UK', but losing the 'a' part of the 'K' in favour of 'ish'.
OK. Maybe it does exist, and is pronounced. I defer to @Gee D's actual knowledge.
Similarly, I've never actually spoken the word "USian", which we learn is popular in at least some Canadian circles, but it wouldn't occur to me to pronounce it any way other than you-essian were I to try.
Wow she really was funny - very clever and - I don't mean to be patronising but to be funny in a foreign language takes some doing! Thank you for sharing!
An incredible achievement! Imagine the pride felt today by Pifflejohnson and his predecessors.
Why, Ms Surgical Appliance Truss, our Beloved Trade Minister, is even now negotiating wonderful deals with such major world powers as LaLaLand, Ultima Thule, Ruritania, Mordor...the list goes ever on and on.
Unicorns from LaLaLand, ready-made ice cubes (for Gin) from Ultima Thule, royal family lookalikes from Ruritania, fruit-picking Orcs from Mordor - all the essentials that a Global Britain needs...
(For the avoidance of doubt, this is satire. Mind you, we may well be in need of the fruit-picking Orcs this year...)
Yes because Hobbits are too small. Where’s my coat
Indeed. Hobbits can't reach the higher fruit, but Orcs have long arms...
I think you should...
If at breakfast, you may have a problem...
I notice the raspberries we had for dessert came from Morocco.
Better not - the Brits will be needing every drop to drown their sorrows.
Peru has been a source of blueberries, French beans and a load of other fruit and vegetables since before Brexit, and blueberries from Morocco.
What I'm noticing is gaps on shelves when I go in store, and things not available - currently Tesco has no own brand wholemeal pitta bread just Warburtons at over twice the price and double the additives. (Sorry, that comes from the advertising slogan: Warburtons, bread with nowt taken out ... but a whole lot of extras added.) M&S has no gluten free pitta bread and hasn't had any for weeks.
This is anecdotal, to say the least, but the massive decrease in trade between England and Europe does seem to have reduced the amount of lorry traffic on the M2 motorway to Dover (which is visible from the place where my Ark is moored).
I've also not heard or seen much about the rather vexed subject of large swathes of Kent being taken up by enormous lorry parks, some of which at least were being laid down very quickly with precious little, if any, local consultation. The predicted massive queues of lorries, with drivers pooing on the grass verges, haven't AFAIK materialised.
OTOH, I hear that hauliers in Ireland are using direct ferry services to France, in order to get round the awkward object that is England...
Still, there's all those luscious trade deals pending, with countries no-one's ever heard of.
https://tinyurl.com/cp77c69z
EE reintroduces roaming charges for UK users in Europe. No point switching, the others will follow.
Although if enough people switch, the mobile phone companies might sit up and take notice (EE - for loss of trade, everyone else - for unexpectedly gained business).
And in other news (link to Guardian), Lord Frost (the Brexit negotiator) is quoted as saying:
*swoons*
https://theguardian.com/business/2021/jun/25/uk-facing-summer-of-food-shortages-due-to-lack-of-lorry-drivers
I'll get me coat.
I suspect it's not unlikely that some milk shortages could be caused by the NI situation. As I understand it, pre-Brexit 15-20% of UK's dairy products were coming in from France and Ireland (with the latter being the larger source).
Whether that's the cause of your local shortage, who can tell.
Or perhaps just one reason - Bozzymandias Bumfluffbonce...
(Beloved Leader, that is).