FOSTER IN STORM OVER GOOD FRIDAY DEAL REMARKS
RIVALS POUNCE ON CLAIM 1998 AGREEMENT IS ‘NOT SACROSANCT’
JON TONGE: IS THE ACCORD ALIVE AT ALL?
PM BLASTS BORIS BID ‘TO TEAR UP GUARANTEE TO THE PEOPLE OF NI’
ONE of the key architects of the peace process has appealed to Arlene Foster to think beyond the DUP’s current position of influence after the former First Minister claimed the Good Friday Agreement was “not sacrosanct”.
Former SDLP Deputy First Minister Seamus Mallon joined the chorus of critics following her comments in a Daily Telegraph interview.
He said that, sadly, he was “not surprised” by Mrs Foster’s rhetoric.
“Even when she was First Minister she was never really in tune with the objectives of the Good Friday Agreement, which seek to create equality of life here in the north of Ireland,” he said.
In the interview, Mrs Foster praised Boris Johnson’s “positive” Brexit vision and said it was wrong to think the Good Friday Agreement was sacred when determining any final deal with the EU.
She also said it was “deeply frustrating” to hear people suggest that “we can’t touch” the 1998 accord which has been held up as “a sacrosanct piece of legislation” by those who have misinterpreted it.
Mr Mallon urged Mrs Foster to think beyond the political terrain which her party currently finds itself on, which will inevitably shift.
“Let me just say this to Mrs Foster if I may: this agreement you have with the Tory Government is transient and will pass away, but the foundations upon which the Good Friday Agreement was built will last,” he said.
“Those foundations of peace, justice and equality is something you should think about.”
In a stinging critique, Mr Mallon said her words only bolster his belief that she “finds great difficulty with all of the principles” which underline the Agreement.
Mrs Foster’s comments also provoked criticism from Sinn Fein president Mary Lou McDonald and Taoiseach Leo Varadkar.
Ms McDonald called on the Irish Government to make it clear the Good Friday Agreement was “not a chip to be bargained”.
She warned that Mrs Foster’s comments “revealed a reckless disregard” for the peace process, which was endorsed by the vast majority of people on both sides of the border in the 1998 referendum.
“It should be remembered that Arlene Foster left the UUP, which supported the Good Fri- day Agreement, to join the anti-Agreement DUP,” she added. “It appears the DUP leader has learnt nothing over the past 15 years.”
In the Dail, Mr Varadkar said that while it was factually correct to say the Agreement could be changed, he sees Dublin’s role as “co-defenders” of an international agreement and vowed to protect its “primacy”.
Mr Varadkar added the peace deal “is not a piece of British legislation; it is an international agreement between the British and Irish Governments, as well as a multi-party agreement among the various parties”.
“While it may be factually correct to say that the Good Friday Agreement, just like any international treaty, could be changed, it can only be changed with the agreement of British and Irish Governments, and can only be changed with the consent of the people of Northern Ireland, and indeed across cross-community consent.”
UUP leader Robin Swann branded Mrs Foster’s comments as “strategically short-sighted” and said the principle of consent “should be sacrosanct” to all unionists.
He added: “We should be looking to build on this principle and ultimately remove the changes made at St Andrews to finally do away with the sectarian politics which continues to plague us to this day.”
Alliance leader Naomi Long
called on Mrs Foster to clarify her comments and pointed out that there is “a world of difference” between reforming structures with the consent of the population “and undermining the spirit of the GFA” against the wishes of the electorate.
She also warned that a “headlong rush” towards a hard Brexit could render the founding principles of co-operation and interdependence as collateral damage.
But yesterday Mrs Foster said the Agreement is not infallible and has already been “changed on a number of occasions” citing the St Andrews Agreement and Stormont House Agreement as examples.
“It is a thing of its time and changeable,” she added. Mrs Foster also said she has “concerns” over the Chancellor’s claim that there may have to be a hard border in Ireland in the event of a no-deal Brexit.
Philip Hammond is reported to have told a Tory conference fringe event that in the event of no deal, London, under World Trade Organisation rules, would have to reinstate checks.
Ms Foster said any extra checks would cause “difficulty” and added that she would be “reiterating” her position on the border issue to the Prime Minister.
Ms Foster was greeted with applause after telling the crowd she would not allow Northern Ireland to become a “semi-de- tached” part of the UK. She said: “We are not going to allow the United Kingdom to be broken up by Brussels or by anybody else, Northern Ireland is not about to become a semi-detached part of the United Kingdom.
“We are not bluffing on this issue, we are very clear, our job is to protect the union, our job is to do what is right for Northern Ireland and you can be assured that we will do that.”
Asked about the Chancellor’s reported remarks that if the UK operates on WTO terms, checks at the border will be required, Ms Foster said: “I have concerns.”
She added: “That’s news, because of course up until now we have been saying that it will not be the UK that will be enforcing any borders. If the European Union feel that they need to have a border in Ireland that’s a matter for them if they feel they have to protect their single market in a particular way.
“So Philip Hammond talking about a border is something new, something we want to explore as well, because certainly that’s not my understanding.”
Northern Ireland Secretary Karen Bradley told Tory members that the Government will “never” allow a border down the Irish Sea.
Ms Bradley said: “I want to be absolutely clear: this Government will never allow there to be any break-up of the United kingdom with a border down the Irish Sea.”