EU vaccine export row: Call for UK to override part of Brexit deal
Arlene Foster has called on Boris Johnson to override part of the Brexit agreement to deal with problems in the movement of goods between GB and NI.
It comes as the EU reversed its decision to use the same mechanism to control the export of coronavirus vaccines from the EU into NI.
Northern Ireland's first minister said the move to trigger Article 16 of the NI Protocol was an "act of hostility".
It was prompted by what she called the EU's "vaccine embarrassment".
EU countries are dealing with a big shortfall in vaccines and there was concern the Irish border could be used as a backdoor for supplies entering the UK.
'Peace and harmony'
Mrs Foster urged the prime minister to use the same mechanism to take immediate action to address trade flow problems between GB and NI, as some retailers grapple with post-Brexit arrangements for importing food products from GB.
She told the BBC Radio 4's Today programme that the protocol itself was "unworkable" and it should be replaced, adding it was based on a "misunderstanding" of the Good Friday Agreement, the two-decade-old deal to maintain peace in Northern Ireland.
"This protocol that was meant to bring about peace and harmony in Northern Ireland is doing quite the reverse," she said.
On Friday night, the EU Commission backtracked on its plan to invoke Article 16 of the Northern Ireland Protocol.
The protocol, which is part of the Withdrawal Agreement, is designed to allow the free movement of goods from the EU into NI, and prevent the need for a hard border on the island of Ireland.
Triggering Article 16 would have temporarily placed export controls on the movement of vaccines to prevent NI being used as a backdoor to move them from the bloc into the UK.
The clause allows the EU and UK to chose to suspend any aspects they consider are causing "economic, societal or environmental difficulties".
The Irish government was not consulted on the EU's initial decision to invoke the article, although Taoiseach (Irish PM) Micheál Martin later said the reversal was a "positive development".
Sinn Féin's president Mary-Lou McDonald called the EU's decision a "grave error".
"Our citizens need timely access to lifesaving vaccines not trade disputes," she tweeted.
Parties in Northern Ireland were unanimously opposed to the invocation of Article 16.
Ulster Unionist Party leader Steve Aiken tweeted that Friday's events would "change relations across these islands and beyond".
He called it a "tipping point in so many ways" and said it raised questions about the Republic of Ireland's relationship with the EU, given it was not consulted before the initial move was made.
SDLP leader Colum Eastwood said the decision to not invoke Article 16 was a "welcome reversal" from the European Commission.
"Let this be a lesson to all parties on the need for consideration, co-operation and faithful implementation of commitments," he said.
Alliance MP Stephen Farry said his party had been in contact with the EU and the Irish government on Friday evening, and had stressed the importance of the decision being reversed.
He said it was something which "should not have happened" and that "trust and confidence now needs to be rebuilt".
Irish Foreign Affairs Minister Simon Coveney said "lessons should be learned" about the way the matter had been handled.
"The protocol is not something to be tampered with lightly," he tweeted.
"It's an essential, hard won compromise, protecting peace and trade for many."
January 30, 2021 at 10:45PM
https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-northern-ireland-55866285
Labels: BBC News
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
Subscribe to Post Comments [Atom]
<< Home