Science

Birkenstock said the investment would help it expand in China and India, and fund the development of its website and the expansion of its main German factory in Görlitz.

Founded in 1774 in Langen-Bergheim by Johann Adam Birkenstock, a cobbler, the company set up its first factory in 1925. It will remain partly owned by the descendants of its founder – the brothers Alex and Christian Birkenstock – who will continue to oversee production of its footwear in Germany.

Arnault’s experience in taking brands to Asia, and L Catterton’s ownership of fashion brands such as Ganni, Seafolly and Pepe Jeans are thought to have swung the bid in their favour.

Christian and Alex Birkenstock said: “For the next 250 years we need partners sharing the same strategic and long-term vision as the Birkenstock family. In L Catterton and Financière Agache, we have found those partners. They bring both a deep understanding of the details of a manufacturing business that is all about quality and a respect for brands with a long heritage like ours. We look forward to taking the next steps with our partners and carrying our family business into an even brighter future.”

Arnault said his investment would help the sandal maker “fully realise its significant growth potential”, adding: “Birkenstock was founded nearly 250 years ago and has grown to become one of the few iconic brands in the footwear industry. We truly appreciate brands with this long heritage.”

Zarah Sultana, a Coventry MP, said the judgment was “brilliant news”. She tweeted: “The Keane family were denied an Irish-only inscription on Margaret’s headstone in Coventry … but today they won their appeal. Justice is done! Congratulations to the Keane family!”

The court’s judgment overturned a ruling last summer by Stephen Eyre QC, chancellor of the consistory court in the diocese of Coventry. He said: “Given the passions and feelings connected with the use of Irish Gaelic, there is a sad risk that the phrase would be regarded as some form of slogan or that its inclusion without translation would of itself be seen as a political statement.

“That is not appropriate and it follows that the phrase ‘In ár gcroíthe go deo’ must be accompanied by a translation which can be in a smaller font size.”

Keane’s daughters, Bez Martin and Caroline Newey, said the ruling had “politicised a grieving family’s final declaration of love. It has been devastating to us, and it has suspended the grieving process.”

The Church of England said the decision did not reflect its policies. “The Irish language is an important part of the heritage of the Church of England. It was, after all, Irish-speaking monks in Lindisfarne and beyond who played a central role in establishing the church in what is now England.”

Christopher Cocksworth, the bishop of Coventry, said he was “deeply saddened whenever people’s identity is hurt or offended”.

Keane and her husband were born in the Irish Republic but lived in the UK. Both were active in the Gaelic Athletic Association.

During the one-day sitting at the court of arches, lawyers for the family cited human rights law and said the Irish language had been singled out as there were inscriptions in other languages without translation in the graveyard.

Keane’s husband, Bernie, felt he had let his wife down by not honouring her final wishes, the court heard.

The court decided that a translation of the words should be provided in the “appropriate parish register”, rather than inscribed on the gravestone.

“I don’t think anybody was fully aware of the extent of the entanglement of the UK with the EU. Like any sector – the same goes for fishing, transport and logistics – the university sector is grappling with the complexities of the situation that weren’t known until it happened,” said Claire Gorrara, dean of research and innovation at Cardiff University and chair of the University Council of Modern Languages.

As of 1 January 2021, students arriving in EU countries must submit large amounts of paperwork to obtain visas for their stay, with requirements differing by country. Students must also demonstrate that they can afford their stay in some countries, including proof of more than €6,000 (£5,194) in their bank account in Austria, Italy and Portugal, or of an income of €700-€800 a month in Germany, Denmark and Sweden.

Nigel Harkness, a pro-vice-chancellor and French professor at Newcastle University, said academics and students were unable to prepare for these changes before 1 January. “Most EU countries weren’t in a position to confirm what their own arrangements were because we hadn’t confirmed them on our side, so this has created extra bureaucracy, and it’s been frustrating. We’ve all been developing policy and processes on the hoof.”

Despite the new rules coming into force nearly two months ago, academics said many students were still stuck in the UK awaiting further instructions or attempting to decipher conflicting information. Some students who remained in EU countries over Christmas to avoid Brexit complications have been told they must return to the UK to apply for their visas.

“The UK government guidance remains insufficient – full of unhelpful ‘you may need’ phrases and links to other, EU government sites that often contradict that guidance. It’s all proving very confusing, stressful and expensive for students who until recently had freedom of movement,” said Julia Waters, a professor of French and the year abroad coordinator at the University of Reading.

The year abroad is a mandatory part of modern languages degrees for about 7,000 students in the UK and is considered essential to improve their language fluency and cultural awareness. Lots of students had been planning to head out at the beginning of 2021, while those studying two or more languages typically divide the year into placements in different countries.

The Brexit disruption follows months of uncertainty caused by the coronavirus pandemic. Students have complained of inconsistent approaches across universities – some have prevented students from travelling all year, while others cancelled the first semester, in some cases at the last minute. This has been further complicated by some EU countries introducing travel bans on non-EU residents, which now apply to UK citizens.

Caitlin Hodgson and Yasmin Payne, students at the University of Reading, employed a Spanish lawyer to help with paperwork after Spain closed its borders to the UK due to coronavirus. “We tried to start the application for residency on our own, which proved futile, firstly as you require a representative, and secondly as the majority of the steps must be done in person in Spain. As we couldn’t get to Spain without a residency, we found ourselves going in circles,” said Hodgson.

Esme Cawley, a third-year French and Hispanic student at the University of Sheffield, said she had spent hundreds of pounds on healthcare plans that were not mandatory for other students travelling to Spain. “Navigating a year abroad post-Brexit has been a total administrative and financial nightmare. Different consulates have different requirements.”

The Foreign Office said visa and entry requirements for UK nationals including students were set by individual EU member states and that it was working with universities to address challenges.

“Local authorities should be ensuring in their development planning in congested urban areas that where there is a lack of space this is used optimally in order to create affordable living areas,” he said. “This is a central, social question particularly in our large cities.”

He also recommended that local authorities should be allowed to appropriate private homes that had been abandoned or whose owners could not be located. In a separate interview, his party colleague Chris Kühn declared: “the time of new build single-family homes is over”.

His remarks follow the recent controversial decision by a Green party district authority leader in the northern city of Hamburg to ban the construction of single-family homes.

Hofreiter has been accused of populism and attempting to restrict Germans’ freedom to choose how they live.

“The Greens have once again surpassed themselves with this populist and sanctimonious attitude,” Sören Bartol, of the left-of-centre Social Democrats said.

Christian Hirte of the Christian Democratic Union said Hofreiter’s remarks were “typical for the Greens’ disturbed relationship towards property and the reality of life in rural areas”. His colleague Christian Baldauf, the CDU’s lead candidate in the state of Rheinland-Pfalz, said Germans who wanted to build their own homes should not be dictated to. “This is an example of an anti-family, ideological policy.”

Daniel Föst of the pro-business FDP accused the Greens of “wanting to put people off the dream of owning their own home”.

The increase in inhabitants in towns and cities in Germany over the past few years together with low interest rates has caused house prices and rents to rise far quicker than incomes, creating a squeeze on living space.

But Lars Feld, one of Germany’s leading economists warned that a ban on family homes was not the answer to the problem, and would likely lead to more social inequality.

“People who already live in houses, would profit because their value would likely rise considerably,” he told Der Spiegel. “That would likely lead to a decrease in the proportion of people who own their own properties, which is anyway very low in Germany compared to the rest of the world, because people would be forced to rent. And this would lead to greater wealth inequality”.

In Germany only about 45% of the population own their own property, according to the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), compared with about 65% in the UK. .

On Valentine’s Day, the Cypriot president, Nicos Anastasiades, followed suit flying into Israel to strike the same deal. The agreement is expected to come into effect by 1 April.

Like Greece, the Mediterranean island’s economy is heavily reliant on tourism. Both have attracted ever more Israeli holidaymakers in a reflection of their deepening political, economic and military alliance with the state but like destinations elsewhere have also seen the sector hammered by the pandemic.

“When the world is in upheaval because of corona, the warm relations between our two countries are more important than ever,” Anastasiades said after holding talks with the Israeli president, Reuven Rivlin. “The resumption of unrestricted free movement is of great importance to Cyprus, which is a tourism-dependent country.”

Mitsotakis’s proposal was initially met with scepticism by the EU amid fears it could be perceived as discriminatory. But in an indication that the idea may be gaining traction the British prime minister, Boris Johnson, said on Monday he believed coronavirus certificates might be “very much in the mix down the road”.

“I think inevitably there will be great interest in ideas like: can you show you’ve had a vaccination against Covid in the way that sometimes you have to show you’ve had a vaccination against yellow fever or other diseases in order to travel somewhere,” Johnson told reporters during a visit to a vaccine centre. “I think that is going to be very much in the mix down the road. I think that is going to happen.”

Under the accords, Israeli citizens who can prove they’ve received an EU-approved Covid-19 jab will neither have to undergo PCR tests nor self-isolate for any period of time upon arrival in either Greece or Cyprus once travel resumes. Passenger flights are currently banned with Israel’s airport remaining closed to all non-emergency travel despite the country’s widely praised vaccination campaign.

“This is a first step in restoring the connectivity between the two countries,” the Greek Cypriot transport minister, Yiannis Karousos, told the Cyprus news agency on Monday. “It is very important and will be combined with other support measures that will be announced soon.”

Describing the accord as a “huge achievement”, Cyprus’s deputy tourism minister, Savvas Perdios, said over 300,000 Israeli holidaymakers flew into the island in 2019. Another 40,000 had arrived on cruise ships. “Israel is effectively one of the most important markets for us in terms of tourism and this agreement will certainly boost our economy,” he said.

Although Greece has fared better than most other countries in Europe with its coronavirus case count at 172,824 and death toll at just over 6,000, it experienced a massive drop in arrivals last year.

Covid-19 was a disaster for sales, but then came Brexit. “Having spent the last 25 years developing a successful sales operation throughout the EU, which until recently accounted for about 50% of our sales, we are now facing the prospect of our EU business being wiped out due to the complications of the Brexit deal,” says Bennett.

“Feedback from our clients on the continent is that they will not accept the extra customs charges and duties, and will simply switch to our competitors who remain in the EU. Who can blame them? I would do the same.”

Like many other UK small businesses – the British Chambers of Commerce said last week that half of small businesses that export to the EU from the UK were struggling with Brexit rules, regulations and costs – Bennett says he has no option but to shift part of his company from Stockport to France, so it is back inside the EU’s single market.

“Our only chance to retain EU business is to create a distribution centre in France,” he said. This, unfortunately, will have the effect of taking jobs and economic activity away from north-west England.

Luckily, back in 2016 Bennett took a majority shareholding in a French weaving factory based between Lyon and Roanne, and which still has spare space. To help cover his costs Bennett will offer joint use of the facility to other UK companies with similar problems.

“There must be thousands of companies in exactly the same situation. If they all reduce their UK staff by one-third, the consequences to the UK economy will be massive,” he says.

Already the authorities in the Netherlands and Austria are luring hundreds of UK companies into their territories and tax jurisdictions as UK exporters struggle. And now, so too are the French.

Artus Galiay, the representative to the UK for the Hauts-de-France region that extends from the outskirts of Paris to Calais and Dunkirk, says the regional council there is not trying to act as a parasite on the UK’s post-Brexit economy – but to help.

He is, however, keen to sell what the region offers, and delights in historical allusions. Hauts-de-France offers industrial and logistics sites, what he calls “a dynamic commercial real estate market with competitive costs”, as well as lawyers and accountants. It also wants a chance to repay past generosity.

“We are here to strengthen relations that are centuries old,” says Galiay. “History fans will remember that around 500 years ago, in 1520, it was Henry VIII who welcomed his rival French King François I at the Field of the Cloth of Gold near Calais, at a time when the city was English. Five hundred years later, we are here to return that favour.”

Bennett, meanwhile, is glad that after a dismal period, his French investment will help Bennett Silks in a way he had not expected. But he still can’t believe the unnecessary problems that have been put in exporters’ ways. He ridicules the idea that other trade deals with far-off countries will replace being members of the EU single market.

“To turn our backs on the world’s largest trading bloc, which is on our doorstep, in favour of trying to create trade deals with countries that couldn’t be further away, and have much smaller economies, is total stupidity and beyond comprehension,” he says.

“Covid has kept the Brexit issues out of the headlines, but to try and get a message across to our single- minded, short-sighted government, it needs to be in the headlines. I cannot think of one single positive benefit from Brexit, only negatives, and all my customers and contacts are of the same opinion.