Rishi Sunak is about to sign a new Brexit deal with Brussels today, despite warnings it could spark another Tory civil war.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen will travel to the UK on Monday morning to meet the Prime Minister and shake hands on a new deal on post-Brexit trade deals for Northern Ireland.
The commission said the meeting will take place in Windsor, raising the possibility that Mrs von der Leyen may also hold talks with King Charles.
Unionists and some Conservative MPs warned at the weekend against any move that could drag the monarch into controversial Brexit politics.
Downing Street insisted that negotiations were still continuing last night after the Prime Minister and Ms von der Leyen held telephone conversations yesterday.
Sunak has said the deal will “show that Brexit really works and get the job done”, adding: “This deal will work better for businesses and communities and get the goods moving.” It will solve the problems so we can all move forward. This will put Northern Ireland in control of its own destiny. This is a very positive thing.’
Government sources have also claimed that the deal includes “significant and far-reaching” concessions that will safeguard Northern Ireland and its place in the UK.
A cabinet minister has said the deal is better than “any of (Sunak’s) predecessors got.”
Mr Sunak discussed the final details of a ‘Stormont lockdown’ designed to give Northern Ireland a say, but not a veto, over new EU trade laws that will continue to apply.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen will travel to the UK on Monday to meet the Prime Minister and shake hands on a new deal on post-Brexit trade deals for Northern Ireland.
Deputy First Minister Dominic Raab said Sunak was “on the cusp” of a deal that would result in a “substantial reduction” of the role of the Court of Justice of the European Union in Northern Ireland.
But barring a last-minute hiccup, a deal is expected today. Came as:
- Mr Sunak discussed the final details of a ‘Stormont lockdown’ designed to give Northern Ireland a say, but not a veto, over new EU trade laws that will continue to apply;
- The Prime Minister held private talks at Number 10 with Northern Ireland Minister Steve Baker, who has been placed on “resignation watch” by Tory whips;
- Downing Street declined to say whether MPs would vote on the deal;
- A poll by the Conservative Home website found that Tory activists oppose Sunak’s plan 41 percent to 36;
- Former Brexit minister Lord Frost urged the PM to revive the controversial Northern Ireland Protocol Bill, saying it was vital to be “really tough” on Brussels;
- The European Research Group (ERG) of conservative parliamentarians said it would set up a ‘star chamber’ of lawyers to examine whether the new deal meets its sovereignty tests;
- Democratic Unionist Party MP Sammy Wilson said it was a “red line” for his party that “there shouldn’t be any EU law that applied to this part of the UK”.
Cabinet ministers, who will be formally briefed on the plans this afternoon, called Conservative MPs last night for support.
The commission said the meeting will take place in Windsor, raising the possibility that Ms von der Leyen may also hold talks with King Charles.
Downing Street insisted that negotiations were still continuing last night after the Prime Minister and Ms von der Leyen held telephone conversations yesterday.
What is the Brexit dispute about and what has been the impact on Northern Ireland?
The UK and the EU have been involved in substantive negotiations over the operation of the Northern Ireland Protocol to the original withdrawal agreement that allowed the UK to leave the EU.
It was designed to ensure the free movement of goods across the Irish land border with Ulster after Brexit.
Instead of being an internal EU line between two countries, with Brexit it became a border between the bloc and a third country with different customs and trade rules.
In any other case, it would be resolved simply by creating a ‘hard’ border: physical checks on vehicles and people traveling between the two.
But the Good Friday Agreement, which ended decades of violence in 1998, expressly prohibits a return to such checkpoints on the island of Ireland.
To prevent this, the protocol created economic barriers to trade being sent from Great Britain to Northern Ireland.
It has proven deeply unpopular with unionists, who say it has weakened Northern Ireland’s place within the UK.
Last year, the DUP collapsed the power-sharing institutions in Stormont in protest of the fixes. It came as Sinn Fein replaced the party as the largest in power-sharing government for the first time.
And the DUP refuses to back a deal and restart power-sharing unless their concerns are addressed. They have set seven tests that you must pass to be approved.
Sunak is expected to reveal the details in a statement to Parliament this afternoon. And preparations are even being made for a joint press conference with Mrs. von der Leyen.
The Prime Minister will tell MPs that their agreement will secure Northern Ireland’s place in the Union and protect the future of the Good Friday Agreement.
It is expected to lead to the removal of a barrage of EU checks on goods shipped to the province from the rest of the UK, which has caused big problems for businesses and families, and raised trade union fears that Ireland del Norte could be forced to leave. the United Kingdom.
Deputy First Minister Dominic Raab said Sunak was “on the cusp” of a deal that would result in a “substantial reduction” of the role of the Court of Justice of the European Union in Northern Ireland.
Raab said the deal would mark a “paradigm shift” in relations and “would be very good news for communities in Northern Ireland and I think for the Good Friday Agreement as well.”
Ministers are optimistic they can win over most eurosceptic Conservative MPs with a deal that Raab said would “properly and fully finish Brexit” and open the door to warmer relations with the EU.
But senior DUP officials warned they were not yet convinced the deal was enough to persuade them to return to power-sharing in Northern Ireland, a key goal of the prime minister.
And some Tory eurosceptics said they would have a hard time supporting a deal that was not endorsed by the DUP and left the EU with a foothold in Britain.
In an ominous intervention last week, Boris Johnson told the prime minister that the “best way forward” would be to take unilateral legal powers to remove EU trade controls in Northern Ireland.
Sunak said yesterday that he was “giving everything we have” to reach an agreement.
In an interview with the Sunday Times, the prime minister said his new deal was not a threat to Brexit, but “to make sure Brexit works in all parts of the UK.”
Last night neither No 10 nor Buckingham Palace commented on whether the King would meet Mrs von der Leyen today.
Details of a meeting scheduled for Saturday, which was canceled for “operational reasons”, raised concerns that the number 10 was hoping to give the deal the impression of royal approval to avoid opposition.
The Mail on Sunday revealed yesterday that the King’s first trip abroad will be to Berlin and Paris, in a break with the tradition of using the maiden visit to travel to a Commonwealth country.
Jacob Rees-Mogg said that “it would be wrong for Downing Street to put pressure on the King” over a highly political issue. And Mr Wilson warned number 10 against a “cynical use” of the King’s position.
In an ominous intervention last week, Boris Johnson told the prime minister that the “best way forward” would be to take unilateral legal powers to remove EU trade controls on Northern Ireland.
Sunak is expected to reveal the details in a statement to Parliament on Monday afternoon.
Mr Sunak’s deal will create a “green lane” that will remove almost all EU controls on goods coming into Northern Ireland from the UK. It will also give the province some input into the new EU laws.
ERG chairman Mark Francois said the concessions did not seem to go far enough and that he would agree to a deal only if “EU law is removed from Northern Ireland”. ‘Less than one role is not enough.
“Just putting a couple of intermediate phases but in a situation where you still end up with the Court of Justice of the European Union is effectively sophistry. We are not stupid.
DUP MP Ian Paisley said: “If the Prime Minister’s plan involves keeping any part of the protocol, the DUP will not share power again.”