May: No PM could ever agree to it
She rejects EU’s Irish border plan
THERESA May yesterday rejected an EU bid to keep Northern Ireland in the customs union – and vowed it would never happen.
The European Commission delivered a draft withdrawal agreement that would allow goods to pass freely between the north and the Republic.
But Mrs May warned the move would “create a border down the Irish Sea”. She added: “No UK Prime Minster could ever agree to it. I will be making it crystal clear to President [Jean-Claude] Juncker we will never do so.”
But there were also fears the Good Friday Peace Agreement could be damaged if the province leaves the customs union and a hard border is in place. Tory Ken Clarke reminded Mrs May she agreed Northern Ireland could keep “full regulatory convergence on both sides”. Shadow Brexit Secretary Sir Keir Starmer added: “There can be no deviation from the commitments made to Northern Ireland. That means no hard border.”
Former Tory PM Sir John Major said: “We need a policy to protect the Good Friday Agreement… and urgently.”
Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson dodged a Commons debate over his letter to the PM saying she should prevent the Irish border becoming “significantly” harder.
His Labour counterpart Emily Thornberry branded him an “absolute disgrace” for not turning up.