No ‘red flags’ in deal aimed to restore powersharing in Stormont, says Leo Varadkar

Speaking in Brussels on Wednesday, Mr Varadkar said Ireland and the EU will have questions around the deal published by the British government, which will mean no routine checks on goods crossing from Great Britain to Northern Ireland – a key demand of the DUP.

“We’re going to have to study it, I think there are certainly going to be some questions that we will want to ask, more particularly the European Commission will want to ask some questions about the trading arrangements,” he said.

“But from what we’ve seen so far I don’t see any red flags; anything that would give us undue cause for concern.”

He said it was important that it is “faithful” to the Good Friday Agreement, the Windsor Framework and ensures no hard border between North and South.

“What I would like is a situation whereby Northern Ireland can benefit both from unfettered access to the internal market of the UK but also unfettered access to the single market of the European Union,” he added.

Routine post-Brexit checks on goods shipped from Great Britain to final destinations in Northern Ireland are to be removed as part of a British government deal to restore powersharing at Stormont.

A command paper titled “Safeguarding The Union” commits to replacing the current green lane process, which requires percentages of goods to be checked as they arrive from Great Britain, with a “UK internal market system” that will govern the movement of goods that will remain within the United Kingdom.

DUP leader Jeffrey Donaldson has hailed the move as a key concession that will effectively scrap the contentious so-called Irish Sea border for goods destined to remain within the UK.

“There should not be a border within the UK internal market. These proposals remove that border,” he said.

The measure is part of a wide-ranging deal agreed between the DUP and the Government that is set to bring about the restoration of devolved government in Northern Ireland after a two-year hiatus.

Speaking on RTÉ’s Six One News, Mr Donaldson said he believed Stormont could return within the coming days, if the government delivered on its commitments.

“Tomorrow the proposals will be published. Everyone will be able to see them. Then on Thursday I expect that the legislation will be brought before parliament.

“It will be debated and voted upon in the House of Commons and I think that will then clear the way for the next steps to be taken to have Stormont restored.

“And I believe that can happen within the next few days, provided and upon the condition that the government delivers on its commitments,” Mr Donaldson said.

When asked about the live leaks from the DUP meeting where members discussed the deal, Mr Donaldson said it was something the party would “seek to deal with”.

“Of course I’m concerned when we have someone who is secretly recording things that are happening in a private meeting. That is something that we will seek to deal with,” Mr Donaldson said.

When Stormont is restored, it will be with Sinn Féin’s Michelle O’Neill as first minister, the first time the party has occupied the role.

Asked if Mr Donaldson will be happy to see Ms O’Neill as first minister, the DUP leader said Stormont was about “parties working together”.

“It is a joint office. There will be the first and deputy first minister working together and that’s what Stormont is about. It is about the parties working together to deliver for Northern Ireland,” Mr Donaldson said.

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said restored powersharing in Northern Ireland offered the prospect of a “brighter future”.

Mr Sunak told the Commons: “After two years without an executive, there is now a prospect of powersharing back up and running, strengthening our Union, giving people the local, accountable government that they need, and offering a brighter future for Northern Ireland.”

The DUP has agreed to drop its two-year blockade of Stormont in exchange for the Government measures aimed at addressing its concerns about post-Brexit trading arrangements that created economic barriers between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK.

The Stormont Assembly could sit again as soon as Saturday.

Today’s News in 90 Seconds – January 31st

The post-Brexit red lane for transporting goods from GB to NI and on into the EU Single Market will remain, but the command paper offers measures aimed at reducing the volume of trade required to use that red-tape heavy route, with a prediction that 80pc of goods will now move free of routine checks through the internal market system.

The move to reduce post-Brexit checks on GB-NI trade would represent a change to the current EU/UK Windsor Framework agreement and therefore would require Brussels approval.

It is understood the EU has been kept up to date with the shape of the Government’s package of measures.

Downing Street has said that the deal contains “significant” changes to the Windsor Framework’s “operation”, but is not about altering the “fundamentals” of the framework.

The formal implementation of any changes to the framework are expected to be examined and decided upon within the existing EU/UK Joint Committee framework in the days and weeks ahead.

The command paper said the replacement of the green lane would ensure there will be “no checks when goods move within the UK internal market system save those conducted by UK authorities as part of a risk-based or intelligence-led approach to tackle criminality, abuse of the scheme, smuggling and disease risks”.

The paper adds: “This will ensure the smooth flow of goods that are moving within the UK internal market.”

As well as moves to cut Brexit bureaucracy on Irish Sea trade, the command paper includes a series of measures aimed at providing assurances around Northern Ireland’s constitutional position within the United Kingdom.

Legislation will be tabled with the purpose of “affirming Northern Ireland’s constitutional status underpinned by, among other provisions, the Acts of Union”.

The paper said: “The legislation will affirm Parliament’s sovereignty over all matters in Northern Ireland, and address the concern that Northern Ireland’s constitutional position in the Union has been weakened by the creation of specific arrangements for trade in goods.”

The Government has also pledged to amend domestic law, specifically section 7A of the European Union (Withdrawal) Act, to affirm the fact that new EU laws will not automatically apply in Northern Ireland, and must first be subject to democratic oversight by the Stormont Assembly.

The oversight procedures already outlined in the Windsor Framework include the so-called Stormont brake mechanism that enables 30 or more MLAs to flag a concern about a new EU law planned to come into effect in Northern Ireland. The Government is obliged to assess whether those concerns meet a threshold that could then result in the UK vetoing the application of the law in the region.

Legislation promised in the deal is set to be fast-tracked through Parliament on Thursday to enable the swift restoration of the institutions at Stormont.

The command paper also includes commitments to ensure Northern Ireland goods will always be able to be sold in the GB market regardless of any divergence in EU and UK standards.

In respect of further UK divergence from EU standards, there is also a legal requirement that new Westminster legislation is assessed as to whether it “impacts on trade between Northern Ireland and Great Britain”.

If it does, there will be a statutory duty for the relevant minister to make a statement “considering any impacts on the operation of Northern Ireland’s place in the UK’s internal market”.

A requirement that saw certain goods sold in Northern Ireland to display a label stating “not for sale in the EU” will now to extend to cover the whole UK.

The Government is also creating two new bodies.

An UK East-West Council will bring together representatives from government, business and the education sector from Northern Ireland and Great Britain to “identify opportunities for deepening connections between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK in areas such as trade, transport, education and culture”.

Intertrade UK will promote trade within the UK. Among its roles will be to proactively communicate with businesses that currently choose not to sell products in Northern Ireland and identify solutions that could enable them to expand their services to the region.