We have to hold ground on backstop

BATTEN down the hatches over Brexit was the key message from Simon Coveney again yesterday.

The Tanaiste had just come from a meeting with his EU colleagues, with time set aside for a special talk with British Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt too.

Mr Coveney met reporters afterwards and he was firm in letting them know that, to paraphrase some British political jargon, Ireland is not for turning.

It’s vital Europe keeps backing us on this, and generally they have.

The Tanaiste warned we would not be “steamrolled” into backing down on our backstop hard line, nor would there be any “keyhole surgery” that would see the Brexit deal or the insurance policy tweaked.

The backstop is our key legal guarantee, a fallback that no matter what happens with Brexit we will never see the return of a hard border on this island.

And to be fair, no matter what mess you might think Leo Varadkar and his Fine Gaelpacked Cabinet of ministers are making of the country, they have stood firm on this issue.

The Taoiseach and his colleagues have held this line for 14 months now since the deal was first brokered in December 2017.

You can say what you like about their domestic politics and policies – they still deserve credit for remaining resolute.