Foreign Secretary Liz Truss is set to hold talks with the vice president of the European Commission amid considerations of overriding parts of the post-Brexit deal for Northern Ireland.

It comes as the government's chief law officer, Attorney General Suella Braverman, is said to have deemed the scrapping parts of the agreement would be lawful. 

On Wednesday, the Prime Minister said the Good Friday Agreement was more important than the Northern Ireland Protocol as he dismissed suggestions of any possible escalatory response from the European Union as “crazy”.

Warnings have been issued from both Joe Biden’s White House and European leaders not to single-handedly meddle with the terms.

However, Boris Johnson said there was no need for “drama” as he doubled down on hints he could override elements of the deal.

Ms Truss is expected to tell EC vice president Maros Sefcovic in a call on Thursday morning that the dispute over Northern Ireland cannot drag on.

She had warned she would “not shy away” from taking action as she accused the EU of proposing solutions that would “take us backwards”.

According to The Times, Ms Braverman had advised that legislation to override the protocol would be legally sound because of the “disproportionate and unreasonable” way it has been implemented by the EU.

She has submitted evidence accusing the EU of undermining the Good Friday Agreement by creating a trade barrier in the Irish Sea, and warned of “societal unrest” in Northern Ireland, the newspaper said.

There is said to be a rift in the Cabinet over the move, with Ms Truss, Ms Braverman and Brexit opportunities minister Jacob Rees-Mogg reportedly in favour, while Chancellor Rishi Sunak is concerned about the impact on the economy.

There have been suggestions that unilateral action by the UK could spark a trade war against the backdrop of the invasion of Ukraine.

But Mr Johnson told BBC News on Wednesday: “Let’s face it, we’re talking about really, in the scheme of things, a very, very small part of the whole European economy, and I think 0.4% of the value of the whole of the EU economy in Northern Ireland.

“It is crazy. I didn’t think there’s any need for drama. This is something that just needs to be fixed.”

Speaking to ITV’s Peston programme, Mr Rees-Mogg said the UK would not involve itself in any trade war with the EU.

“Tit-for-tat retaliation of that kind is the economics of the school ground and it would damage British consumers at a time of rising (prices),” he said.

Northern Ireland minister Conor Burns said on Wednesday evening that the UK Government would have to take unilateral action over the protocol if it could not resolve issues with the EU.

Speaking to LBC’s Tonight With Andrew Marr programme, he said: “If the EU are saying to us that, and they’re not, I don’t think, yet at the position of saying there’s nothing more to talk about, then we will have to take actions to prioritise stability in Northern Ireland, powersharing in Northern Ireland, to protect the institutions of the Good Friday Agreement, and that will mean intervention unilaterally, yes.”

German Chancellor Olaf Scholz has said: “No-one should unilaterally cancel, break or in any way attack the settlement.”

The White House stressed the need for talks to continue to resolve the issues, with a spokesman saying: “The best path forward is a pragmatic one that requires courage, co-operation and leadership.

“We urge the parties to continue engaging in dialogue to resolve differences and bring negotiations to a successful conclusion.”