An interesting exposure of the cost of trade barriers

Of course, the writers here manage to get the benefits of trade the wrong way around but still, a useful estimation of those phytosanitary trade barriers can still be derived:

Exports from Ireland to Great Britain soared in the first six months after Brexit as imports sent in the opposite direction declined, according to Irish government figures.

In a sign of post-Brexit imbalances in trade, the Irish Central Statistics Office (CSO) said goods exports to Great Britain (excluding Northern Ireland) rose by 20% to €6.7bn (£5.7bn) in the first six months of 2021, an increase of more than €1.1bn compared with the same period in 2020.

However, imports from Great Britain fell by more than €2.5bn, or 32%, to stand at €5.3bn in the same period.

Imports are the benefit from trade, they are the thing that we do trade in order to gain. So, Ireland - the Irish consumer - is losing out here as a result of the increased barriers to trade while the British consumer is benefiting from the not increase in barriers to trade.

British exporters have been hit harder by Brexit because they faced border checks from 1 January on shipments to the EU, while Irish and EU exporters to Britain have benefited from a phased in approach the UK government opted for over a 12-month transition period.

It means while all food and plant exports to the EU have been subject to sanitary and phytosanitary checks since January, countries including Ireland selling into the UK are not being subject to the complete panoply of red tape until January 2022.

This may go some way to explain why exports of food and live animals from Ireland to Great Britain rose from €315m in June 2020 to €322m in June 2021, while imports to Ireland almost halved from €243m to €119m.

When the Irish - or the EU - put barriers in the way of trade then they benefit less from trade. This is not exactly a startling finding given the underlying logic here.

Just another proof that unilateral free trade is the only logically or morally useful stance to have on that subject of trade.