After the agreement with the EU on new Brexit rules for Northern Ireland, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak sought local support. The newly negotiated rules secured the province’s sovereignty and a firm place in the UK, Sunak told the BBC on Tuesday. The Conservative Prime Minister was in Northern Ireland to explain the agreements. The deal reached on Monday is intended to end a years-long dispute between the EU and Britain. This will facilitate trade between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK.
The now amended Northern Ireland Protocol was originally negotiated as part of the Brexit deal on Britain’s departure from the EU. It stipulates that the customs border between Great Britain and the EU runs in the Irish Sea. This is to prevent border controls between British Northern Ireland and EU member Ireland having to be introduced. The Union’s Protestant supporters in Northern Ireland felt cut off from Britain and called for change.
It is now crucial that Sunak can convince the unionist party DUP. On the BBC, party leader Jeffrey Donaldson praised the mechanism that would give Northern Ireland the right to veto the role of EU laws in its own market. However, his party will now examine the deal in detail. Sunak received praise from an important critic from his own ranks. Northern Ireland Secretary of State Steve Baker spoke of a “great result”.
