Legislation which would override elements of Boris Johnson’s Brexit deal with Brussels and breach international law is set to be published on Wednesday.
Downing Street had insisted changes in the Internal Market Bill were simply “limited clarifications” to protect the Northern Ireland peace process if they failed to secure a free trade deal with the EU.
But Northern Ireland Secretary Brandon Lewis provoked a furious reaction when he confirmed to MPs on Tuesday that the legislation would breach international law in a “very specific and limited way”.
The Bill, which will be tabled on Wednesday afternoon, is intended to ensure Northern Ireland can continue to enjoy unfettered access to markets in the rest of the UK.
Mr Lewis said the powers the Government was taking would enable ministers to “dis-apply” the EU legal concept of “direct effect” – which requires the enforcement of EU law – in “certain, very tightly defined circumstances”.
His admission led to Conservative former prime minister Theresa May warning the Government was in danger of losing the trust of other countries that it would honour its international agreements, while Labour described the admission as “absolutely astonishing”.
Sir Keir Starmer urged Mr Johnson not to “reopen old wounds” and to instead “get a deal, move on and concentrate on defeating (coronavirus)”.
The row erupted as the pound plummeted against the US dollar amid fears that Mr Johnson’s chances of securing a post-Brexit free trade deal with the EU were diminishing.
It followed the shock announcement that the head of the Government Legal Department Sir Jonathan Jones had become the latest senior civil servant to quit his post.
READ MORE: Opinion: Ian McConnell: Moderate Tory voices absent as UK Brexit crusade at full tilt
No reason was given for his resignation, but the Financial Times reported that he was “very unhappy” with the proposed changes to the Withdrawal Agreement.
The Prime Minister’s official spokesman said: “I can confirm that he is stepping down and we would thank him for his years of hard service and wish him well for the future.”
Meanwhile, the latest round of talks on a post-Brexit trade deal continue in London between the EU’s chief negotiator Michel Barnier and the UK’s Lord Frost.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel