Varadkar: UK relationship now ‘strained’

TAOISEACH Leo Varadkar has said that Ireland’s relationship with the UK has been “strained” by events related to Brexit.

But in an exclusive article in the Sunday Independent today, Mr Varadkar says he does not think relations have been “damaged” and adds that Ireland and the UK “will be close again” as negotiations move into the next phase.

Mr Varadkar also outlines his vision for the future of the European Union, saying he believes it is time to allow candidates be elected to the European Parliament who represent all of Europe.

The Taoiseach’s admission that relations are strained comes as pro-Brexit ministers in the UK ratchet up suggestions that the UK could still diverge from EU law on the single market and customs union.

Meanwhile, the Sunday Independent has separately learned that ministers here have advised that when meeting UK counterparts, they should be careful when discussing Brexit.

Cabinet sources say ministers have sensed that the UK is attempting to pick up “intelligence”.

The joint report from the negotiators of the EU and the UK government last week contained a caveat that “nothing is agreed until everything is agreed” on Brexit.

Economist and Sunday Independent columnist Dan O’Brien today writes: “The chances that nothing will be agreed, resulting in a no-deal Brexit, have likely been lessened by all that has happened in recent weeks, thanks to the manner in which the complexity of the enterprise has been underscored so publicly. That, in turn, exposes past claims by pro-Brexit advocates in Britain that leaving the EU would be easy, costless and bring big benefits.”

But the UK’s Environment Secretary, Michael Gove, who

is a strong Leave supporter, yesterday said that voters in the UK would be able to force changes to an EU withdrawal deal at the next election there if they did not like it.

Mr Gove said: “The British people will be in control. If the British people dislike the agreement that we have negotiated with the EU, the agreement will allow a future government to diverge.”

In the Sunday Independent today, however, Mr Varadkar writes: “We have achieved all we set out to achieve in Phase I of the Brexit negotiations. We got the guarantees we were looking for from the United Kingdom, with the full support of the European Union. And I am satisfied that sufficient progress has been made on issues of national interest to Ireland.”

But he said Ireland would remain “fully engaged and vigilant” throughout Phase II which will entail the negotiation, drafting and conclusion of the new treaties that will be required between the EU and UK and their implementation.

Cabinet ministers here fear counterparts in the UK are seeking to circumvent the EU Brexit taskforce and negotiate a deal with Ireland which is outside the terms of reference set out by the official negotiating team.

Irish ministers believe senior UK politicians are seeking to gleam “intelligence” about the EU and Ireland’s negotiating position when they meet at official functions or summits. “For a long number of months, the British government has tried to directly negotiate with Irish ministers and the Government,” a Cabinet minister said.

“We are explicitly told the negotiating has to be done through the EU27 — but you would get the sense that the British are trying to pick up intelligence from the Irish government,” the minister said.

Stating that last week was “tough” but “worth every moment”, Mr Varadkar said “recent events” had “strained” our relationship with the UK.

“But I do not think that they have damaged it. The UK has been our closest ally on many issues at EU level. We have a shared history, with bonds of friendship and family as well as economic links that will endure. Our two nations will continue to think alike on many matters.”

He added that the UK “can rely on the continued friendship and goodwill of the Irish Government and the Irish people in the months and years ahead”.

As negotiations move to Phase II, he said he had no doubt “we will be close again. This will allow us to focus on the core issues of Phase II: trade, jobs and the transition phase”.

The agreement states that if no trade deal is reached, the UK as a whole will maintain “full alignment” with elements of the EU single market and customs union which support the economy of Ireland and the Good Friday Agreement.