The Press and Journal (Aberdeen and Aberdeenshire)
No wish to go back to ‘hard’ borders
Politics: British Irish Council discuss Brexit
A post-Brexit “hard” border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland must not be allowed to happen, political leaders from both countries have warned.
People and goods going between the two nations have been able to move freely thanks to the Common Travel Area (CTA).
The open borders agreement, set up in the 1920s, has been strengthened by both Britain and Ireland’s European membership.
However, questions and concerns have been raised about what this means for the CTA and for both economies in the wake of the UK’s Leave referendum result. The issue was one of the hot topics discussed at an emergency meeting of the British Irish Council in Cardiff, which was called by Wales’ First Minister Carwyn Jones.
Among heads of government attending the talks were Ireland’s Taoiseach Enda Kenny, Scotland First Minister Nicola Sturgeon as well as Northern Ireland political heavyweights Arlene Foster and Martin McGuinness.
Mr Kenny said it was vital there would not be a return to the days of “checkpoints, towers and customs”.
He said: “There are modern ways of not having hard borders.
“I can tell you that hard borders would not be accepted in the south or the north.
“The best possible outcome for everyone is a UK that’s prosperous and has the closest possible links with the European Union.
“For us in Ireland, that means access to the single market.
“And it’s been made perfectly clear by the EU council that if that is to happen,
“There are modern ways of not having hard borders”
then the respect has to be there for the freedom of (movement of ) people.
“We have difficulties but I expect us to retain the Common Travel Area.
“It’s a fundamental part of who we are.”
Ms Sturgeon described the talks as very “frank and very robust” and said she would ensure Scotland played a full part in the Brexit discussions.
She added: “We are in unprecedented times. And I think that we have to be prepared to think about unprecedented solutions to the circumstances we found ourselves in.
“If there’s not a way of doing that within the UK, then it sends the message to people in Scotland that our voice doesn’t matter and can be ignored.
“The UK is a multinational state and if it’s not able to demonstrate that the voices of the different nations can be heard and listened to, then certain conclusions will be drawn from that.” The UK government had to show the rest of the UK that solutions could be found, she said.