TUSK MASTER
»»EU chief backs the republic over row with uk government »»Call on pm to come up with ‘credible’ solution to impasse
EUROPEAN Council president Donald Tusk has told Theresa May she must satisfy Irish demands that there will be no “hard border” .
In a show of unity with Taoiseach Leo Varadkar in Dublin, he said it was now up to the British Government to come forward with a “credible commitment” to deal with the issue.
He said: “If the UK offer is unacceptable for Ireland, it will also be unacceptable for the EU, I realise for some British politicians this may be hard to understand, but such is the logic behind the fact that Ireland is an EU member while the UK is leaving.
“That is why the key to the UK’S future lies in some ways in Dublin, at least as long as the Brexit negotiations continue.”
Mr Tusk said he had agreed to consult Mr Varadkar on any British proposal before deciding whether to recommend EU leaders give the green light to the second phase of negotiations, including talks on a free trade deal, to begin at their summit on December 14 and 15.
The European Council chief has given Mrs May until Monday to come forward with an improved offer on the terms of the UK’S withdrawal, including the “divorce bill” and future citizens’ rights, as well as the Irish border, if there is to be progress at the December summit.
The UK Prime Minister is due to travel to Brussels on Monday when she is expected to explain the latest British position at a lunch with European Commission president Jean-claude Juncker.
But while the two sides appear to be moving closer on the issues of citizens’ rights and the divorce settlement, with Mrs May reportedly ready to pay around €49billion to settle the UK’S outstanding obligations, the border issue has emerged as a major stumbling block.
The Government has warned as long as the UK remains committed to leaving the single market and the customs union, the return of some form of physical border controls is inevitable.
Mr Varadkar said while there had been “good progress” on the Ireland issue, the UK now needed to present “credible, concrete and workable solutions” which guarantee there will be no hard border. He said: “I believe that with the right engagement and the right political will, we can reach an agreement on the way ahead. “I am also prepared to stand firm with our partners if the UK offer falls short on any of those three issues, including the Irish ones.” Mr Varadkar said good progress had been made during EU-UK negotiations on finance and citizens rights as well as on people moving between Ireland and the UK.
He added advances had been made towards a common understanding on protecting the 1998 Good Friday Agreement.
But he warned the British government must offer credible, concrete and workable solutions guaranteeing no hard border.
The UK is pressing for a frictionless frontier on its only land border with an EU state. It wants to use technology and trading arrangements to ensure the free flow of goods and no return to the heavily militarised border of the conflict.
The Taoiseach said the UK was Ireland’s friend and neighbour and they wanted to work together. He added: “I want to make progress but I also need to make clear – the EU 27 cannot declare sufficient progress without firm and acceptable commitments on the border and that is a position shared across the political spectrum in Ireland.”
On Thursday, the DUP’S East Antrim MP Sammy Wilson said any attempt to “placate Dublin and the EU” could mean the withdrawal of his party’s support for the Conservatives.
He told the BBC: “If there is any hint that in order to placate Dublin and the EU, they’re prepared to have Northern Ireland treated differently than the rest of the UK, then they can’t rely on our vote. They have to recognise that if this is about treating Northern Ireland differently, or leaving us half in the EU, dragging along behind regulations which change in Dublin, it’s not on.”
In June, the DUP agreed to a “confidence and supply” deal with the Conservatives, which involved the unionist party supporting May’s government in key votes at Westminster, thus keeping them in power.
The key to the UK’S future lies in some ways in Dublin DONALD TUSK DUBLIN YESTERDAY