Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has welcomed his deal on post-Brexit trading arrangements for Northern Ireland as a “decisive breakthrough”. The agreement, named the Windsor Framework, has been met with approval from many Conservative MPs, including those who supported Brexit. The DUP, whose support is essential to restoring power-sharing in Northern Ireland, said there had been “significant progress” but warned that “key issues of concern” remain.
Sinn Féin, the largest party in the Northern Ireland Assembly, welcomed the deal but said it still needed to examine the details. Vice President Michelle O’Neill repeated her call for the DUP to return to devolved government, adding: “We always said that with pragmatism, solutions could be found.”
The details of the long-awaited deal were announced during a joint press conference in Windsor between Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. There was a notable warmth between the two as they outlined their agreement, with Mrs von der Leyen referring to the PM as “dear Rishi” and hailing a “new chapter” of a “stronger EU-UK relationship”.
The agreement changes the Northern Ireland Protocol, which was signed by Mr Johnson and came into force in 2021. The protocol aimed to ensure free movement of goods across the Irish land border by conducting checks between Northern Ireland and Great Britain instead. Under the treaty, Northern Ireland had to keep following some EU rules.
The deal will see goods from Britain destined for Northern Ireland travel through a new “green lane”, with a separate “red lane” for goods at risk of moving on to the EU. Products coming into Northern Ireland through the green lane will see most checks and paperwork scrapped, while red lane goods will still be subject to normal checks. A “Stormont brake” allows the Northern Ireland Assembly to raise an objection to “significantly different” EU rules which would apply in Northern Ireland. UK VAT and excise rules will also apply to Northern Ireland for alcoholic drinks for immediate consumption and immovable goods such as heat pumps.
The response from the US has been positive, with White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby saying it will “help improve the prosperity of both the EU and the UK and will open all kinds of new avenues for trade”.
Arch-Brexiteer Steve Baker said Mr Sunak had “pulled a blinder”, while former Prime Minister Theresa May urged MPs to back the deal. However, two other former PMs, Boris Johnson and Liz Truss, failed to attend the Commons debate.
The DUP said it would now want to study the detail of the deal and underpinning legal texts, and would seek “further clarification, reworking or change as required”. The nationalist Social Democratic and Labour Party, and the Alliance Party, which is neither nationalist or unionist, welcomed the deal but both said they had concerns about the Stormont brake clause. The Traditional Unionist Voice Party said the agreement was “much spin, not a lot of substance” and meant the protocol “effectively stays”.
The government has also dropped the controversial Northern Ireland Protocol Bill, which was introduced under Mr Johnson when he was prime minister and would have given the UK the power to unilaterally scrap parts of the old deal. Mr Sunak said Parliament would get a vote on the agreement at the “appropriate time” but added that MPs needed a chance to consider the detail. Labour has said it will support a deal but the government will be reluctant to rely on opposition votes.
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has hailed his post-Brexit trading arrangements for Northern Ireland as a “decisive breakthrough”. The agreement, known as the Windsor Framework, has been met with approval from many Conservative MPs, including those who supported Brexit, as well as from the DUP whose support is essential to restoring power-sharing in Northern Ireland.
Sinn Féin, the largest party in the Northern Ireland Assembly, welcomed the deal but said it still needed to examine the details. Vice President Michelle O’Neill repeated her call for the DUP to return to devolved government, saying: “We always said that with pragmatism, solutions could be found”.
The details of the long-awaited deal were announced during a joint press conference in Windsor between Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. The agreement changes the Northern Ireland Protocol which was signed by Mr Johnson and came into force in 2021. It aimed to ensure free movement of goods across the Irish land border by conducting checks between Northern Ireland and Great Britain instead.
Under the treaty, goods from Britain destined for Northern Ireland will travel through a new “green lane” with a separate “red lane” for goods at risk of moving on to the EU. Products coming into Northern Ireland through the green lane will see most checks and paperwork scrapped while red lane goods will still be subject to normal checks. A “Stormont brake” allows the Northern Ireland Assembly to raise an objection to “significantly different” EU rules which would apply in Northern Ireland. UK VAT and excise rules will also apply to Northern Ireland for alcoholic drinks for immediate consumption and immovable goods such as heat pumps.
The response from the US has been positive with White House National Security Council spokesman John Kirby saying it will “help improve the prosperity of both the EU and the UK and will open all kinds of new avenues for trade”. Arch-Brexiteer Steve Baker said Mr Sunak had “pulled a blinder” while former Prime Minister Theresa May urged MPs to back the deal.
The DUP said it would now want to study the detail of the deal and underpinning legal texts and seek “further clarification, reworking or change as required”. Other parties such as the nationalist Social Democratic and Labour Party and Alliance Party welcomed the deal but both said they had concerns about the Stormont brake clause. The government has also dropped the controversial Northern Ireland Protocol Bill which was introduced under Mr Johnson when he was prime minister.
Mr Sunak said Parliament would get a vote on the agreement at an “appropriate time” but added that MPs needed a chance to consider the detail. Labour has said it will support a deal but the government will be reluctant to rely on opposition votes.