New Irish border plan

JOINT EU-UK STATUS: LETTING IRELAND TRADE WITH BOTH AFTER BREXIT

Proposal is for 16km-wide trade buffer zone from border.

London

The United Kingdom could propose giving Northern Ireland joint UK and European Union (EU) status so it can trade freely with both, in an attempt to break the deadlock in Brexit negotiations, a government official said.

The idea would be to create a 16km-wide trade buffer zone along the border for local traders, such as dairy farmers, after the UK leaves the bloc, said the official, on condition of anonymity. The plan is one of several being discussed and might not be proposed to the EU.

Inspiration for the dual-regulatory system has been taken from Lichtenstein, which operates both the Swiss and the EU-linked European Economic Area regimes at the same time.

The department for exiting the European Union said it had already suggested “two viable future customs arrangements” and did not comment on the new proposal. The existing proposals are using technology to ease border traffic and creating a new “customs partnership” with the EU.

The idea of giving Northern Ireland joint UK and European Union status would likely be opposed by the Northern Irish party, the Democratic Unionist Party. It has said it would oppose a Brexit deal that sees the province operate under different regulations to the rest of the UK.

Martina Anderson, a member of the European Parliament for Sinn Fein, the main Irish nationalist party in Northern Ireland, said: “The creation of a buffer zone would merely move the problem away from the border.”

A spokesperson for Ireland’s department of foreign affairs declined to comment. – Reuters