NORTHERN Irish citizens and businesses are at risk of becoming “permanent casualties” of Brexit if the UK and EU do not resolve their differences, a new report has said.
A committee of peers examining the Northern Ireland Protocol today published detailed findings of their inquiry, concluding there was a “corrosive and mutual lack of trust” between the UK and EU, leading to a “serious deterioration” in the relationships between both sides, as well as the administrations in Belfast and Dublin.
In the initial report, peers said the UK’s "lack of readiness" and the EU’s shortage of flexibility had created difficulties, with the UK believing the EU would favour the Single Market above all else – including the unique political and geographical situation in Northern Ireland.
Meanwhile, the report states, the EU believes the UK will not “live up to its political and legal commitments” and is “seeking to undermine the protocol”.
Peers conclude: “Unless urgent steps are taken to correct this, Northern Ireland and its people will become permanent casualties in the post-Brexit landscape.”
READ MORE: UK Government seeking 'significant change' to Northern Ireland Protocol
The committee examining the issues was made up of politicians from across the political spectrum, but its conclusions in today’s report have been unanimously agreed.
The Protocol was set up to control the flow of goods between the UK and EU after Brexit, but it has left businesses struggling due to the vast amount of extra paperwork needed and additional checks being implemented on produce coming from the UK.
Peers have raised concerns about the shortage of goods getting into Northern Ireland, in particular medical supplies and say the perception from some in the country about a one-sided consultation on the protocol’s implementation has led to violence. The report explains that while most witnesses did not attribute the protocol alone to the rioting and violence in the country in March and April of this year, some said it was almost wholly blame.
The report explains: “Tensions over the Protocol were cited as one of the contributory causes of the violence, and there were several street protests against the Protocol. Protests…have continued to take place in various locations.”
It later explains petrol bombs and fireworks were set off, cars set alight and police had to use water cannons on the streets for the first tie in six years “in what PSNI Assistant Chief Constable Jonathan Roberts referred to as the worst street violence in years.”
READ MORE: EU rules out redrawing Northern Ireland Protocol after 'significant change' demand
Peers concluded that the implementation of the Protocol had undermined the identity of some citizens, explaining:” The Belfast/Good Friday Agreement was underpinned by the frictionless and seamless trade afforded within the EU Single Market, and the Agreement ‘settled’ the issue of identity by allowing people in Northern Ireland to identify as British, Irish or both. Yet these foundations have been undermined.”
They have urged both the UK and EU to break the stalemate over the Protocol, and added: “The Protocol that emerged was not an inevitable result of Brexit, but rather of the political decisions taken during negotiations both by the UK and the EU on what form it should take.
“Yet the Government did not make adequately clear to the people of Northern Ireland what the Protocol would mean in practice.
“Details…were provided extremely late in the day, leaving businesses unprepared, in spite of their best efforts.
“The practical operation of the Protocol since 1 January has therefore come as a shock, contributing to political instability in Northern Ireland and exacerbating underlying community tensions, which could even reverse the progress made under the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement.”
Lord Jay of Ewelme, chairman of the committee on the protocol, said there was an urgent need for compromise.
He explained: “That won’t be easy, but it is an absolute necessity that the UK and the EU should now work together urgently to identify solutions if Northern Ireland is not to become a permanent casualty of the Brexit process.
“The tensions over the protocol currently seem insoluble. Yet that was also true of the political situation during the Troubles. But the peace process ultimately took root and flourished, through a process of time, patience, dialogue, and most of all trust.
“Those same qualities are now needed to address the problems that Brexit and the protocol present.”
The committee on the protocol is a sub-committee of the House of Lords European Affairs Committee, and will return to its inquiry of the mechanism later this year.
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