Bags of red tape

One of the claimed benefits of Brexit is the clearing away of towering thickets of red tape that are supposedly strangling our entrepreneurial spirit.

It is strange then that Defra, led by Mr Gove - a Bretremist sans pareil, is trumpeting the addition of further layers of tape. Even odder is the fact that this is red tape based on EU directives, though Defra claims the measures as their own:

• The plastic bag charge: Defra says this shows the UK is a "global leader in protecting oceans and marine life." However, we brought this in much later than many other EU countries. Maybe Defra means we are ahead of most African countries?

• Banning ivory trading: Gove says this puts "the UK front and centre of global efforts to end the insidious trade in ivory." As our new rules are simply a copy of the rules decided by the EU (and the USA already has a ban) it would be more accurate for him to say that they bundle the UK onto the 'me-too' bandwagon.

Rather than publicising fake wins, Defra should be sorting out Britain's food situation post-Brexit. They might note that I am quite happy for them to claim my own modest proposal as their own.