Thursday

28th Mar 2024

EU again rejects UK demand on Northern Ireland

  • The EU's Brexit point man, Maroš Šefčovič heads to Northern Ireland to learn about concrete problems (Photo: European Commission)
Listen to article

EU Commission vice-president Maroš Šefčovič on Wednesday (8 September) once again rejected the UK's demand to renegotiate the Northern Ireland protocol that governs the relationship between the province the EU and the UK in the post-Brexit era.

Šefčovič told reporters that he was "absolutely convinced" that good solutions can be found within the protocol.

Read and decide

Join EUobserver today

Get the EU news that really matters

Instant access to all articles — and 20 years of archives. 14-day free trial.

... or subscribe as a group

The EU's Brexit negotiator spoke ahead of his first-ever visit to Northern Ireland on Thursday.

He said his aim was "to listen very carefully what are the concrete problems the people of Northern Ireland are facing because of the Brexit, and type of Brexit, chosen by the UK government".

"Let's focus on the concrete problem. Let's not try to renegotiate the protocol. This is definitely not our aim and I believe that we can find the good solution to the outstanding issues," he said before his visit.

Šefčovič added that there is "enough creativity and goodwill to solve" the issue.

The protocol was agreed between London and Brussels as part of the EU-UK divorce agreement.

It keeps some of the EU rules in place in Northern Ireland on checks on goods arriving from the UK, as the border between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland became a new EU external frontier.

The EU argued for keeping the rules in place to avoid a hard border on the island of Ireland, which could flare up sectarian divisions there.

While London had earlier agreed to the arrangement, it has since said that it wants it changed - arguing it has pit barriers between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK.

British prime minister Boris Johnson reiterated his government's demand for renegotiation on Wednesday, telling parliament that the protocol, as it was being applied, was not protecting the Good Friday peace agreement.

London announced on Monday that it is once again postponing the implementation of border checks on goods travelling to Northern Ireland, due to kick in within weeks, this time without giving an end date.

The UK's Brexit minister David Frost said the standstill would "provide space for potential further discussions" with the EU over the two sides' differences on the Brexit divorce agreement.

The EU has previously started a legal procedure against the UK for not implementing the agreed checks, but since than halted the procedure.

EU warns UK of using 'real teeth' in post-Brexit deal

EU Commission president Ursula von der Leyen promised "not to hesitate" to use the "real teeth" of the future relations agreement between the UK and EU, if Britain does not comply with the deal.

EU prepares to ratify post-Brexit trade deal

EU ambassadors of the 27 member states are meeting on Monday to provisionally apply the agreement, while top MEPs also discuss the way ahead for parliamentary approval.

UK threatens to scrap post-Brexit trade deal

The UK rejected proposals by the EU to tweak the protocol governing trade in Northern Ireland, and has threatened to suspend the rules as loyalists lost their majority in the Northern Ireland elections.

Opinion

Why UK-EU defence and security deal may be difficult

Rather than assuming a pro-European Labour government in London will automatically open doors in Brussels, the Labour party needs to consider what it may be able to offer to incentivise EU leaders to factor the UK into their defence thinking.

Latest News

  1. Kenyan traders react angrily to proposed EU clothes ban
  2. Lawyer suing Frontex takes aim at 'antagonistic' judges
  3. Orban's Fidesz faces low-polling jitters ahead of EU election
  4. German bank freezes account of Jewish peace group
  5. EU Modernisation Fund: an open door for fossil gas in Romania
  6. 'Swiftly dial back' interest rates, ECB told
  7. Moscow's terror attack, security and Gaza
  8. Why UK-EU defence and security deal may be difficult

Stakeholders' Highlights

  1. Nordic Council of MinistersJoin the Nordic Food Systems Takeover at COP28
  2. Nordic Council of MinistersHow women and men are affected differently by climate policy
  3. Nordic Council of MinistersArtist Jessie Kleemann at Nordic pavilion during UN climate summit COP28
  4. Nordic Council of MinistersCOP28: Gathering Nordic and global experts to put food and health on the agenda
  5. Friedrich Naumann FoundationPoems of Liberty – Call for Submission “Human Rights in Inhume War”: 250€ honorary fee for selected poems
  6. World BankWorld Bank report: How to create a future where the rewards of technology benefit all levels of society?

Join EUobserver

EU news that matters

Join us