UK won’t ‘undercut’ EU, warns Varadkar
LEO Varadkar has said that there has to be a level playing field in the Brexit negotiations to ensure the single market and customs union are “not diluted”.
The Taoiseach said there must be a common minimum standard so the UK does not attempt to “undercut” the EU over labour and environmental standards.
Mr Varadkar said the Brexit negotiations have reached the halfway point, adding that the next step is to negotiate a free trade agreement. He made the comments as the European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen visited the Republic for the first time in her current role.
During yesterday evening’s discussions, Mr Varadkar and Ms Von der Leyen discussed Brexit and the European Green Deal.
Mr Varadkar said: “I really want to restate Ireland’s deep appreciation and thanks for the solidarity from the commission and the European institutions and other member states.
“Only as a result of that, we have a withdrawal agreement which assures us there is no hard border, that citizens’ rights are protected and the travel area between Britain and Ireland remains in place and that the Good Friday Agreement is protected.
“We saw a real demonstration of that in the fact that the institutions in Northern Ireland are now back up and running.
“I always felt removing uncertainty around Brexit was one of the crucial ingredients that is required to get the parties together again.
“The next step is negotiating a free trade agreement with the UK. When it comes to Brexit it is only half-time and the next step is to negotiate a free trade agreement. There also has to be a level playing field so that the single market and the customs union are not diluted.
“We must have common minimum standards so that the UK doesn’t attempt in any way to undercut the EU when it comes to labour and environmental standards.”
Speaking in Dublin, Ms Von der Leyden said the UK will leave the EU in two weeks.
“There’s almost no other country in the EU that is more affected by this decision than Ireland,” she added. “That’s why Ireland and Northern Ireland were one of our top priorities during the withdrawal negotiations. We do not want a hard border, we delivered that.
“We’ve said that Ireland will stay at the heart of the EU.”