What the commentators said
Britain has given the EU and Ireland “a gratuitous kick in the shins”, said Matthew Parris in The Times. It was the notoriously abrasive Frost who signed us up to the NI Protocol as the UK’s chief Brexit negotiator. Yet now he has blown a hole through the middle of it in a naked attempt to “wriggle out of commitments we made”. Frankly, neither the UK nor the EU should have agreed to the Protocol, said Kate Hoey in The Daily Telegraph. It lumbers businesses with “ridiculous” rules hindering trade over the Irish Sea. And, in an apparent breach of the Good Friday Agreement, it has fundamentally altered Northern Ireland’s status in the UK by making it subject to thousands of EU regulations which do not apply to the mainland.
Blame Boris Johnson, said Simon Jenkins in The Guardian. He knew that if we left the customs union, there would have to be a regulatory border either in the Irish Sea or on the island of Ireland – but he refused to admit it. Now, he has to make a decision: he must either do Brussels’ bidding, and erect customs barriers around Belfast Dock, or he must erect them around the six counties. The former would “enrage Unionists”; the latter would be a “logistical and emotional nightmare”. If he can’t decide, perhaps he should ask Northern Ireland’s voters to decide. In the meantime, they’ll continue to suffer the consequences of this disastrous fudge, said Martin Fletcher in the New Statesman. Onerous border checks in the Irish Sea will stay; disrupted trade will lead to less choice and higher prices; and Loyalist paramilitary groups will seethe about the way the Protocol has, in their view, undermined the province’s position in the UK. Many share their anger. With the Loyalist marching season looming, along with the potentially fraught centenary of Ireland’s partition in May, Northern Ireland is facing a “perfect storm”, which an extension of grace periods for trade across the Irish Sea will do little to allay. “The province, and our reckless Prime Minister, should brace for a long hot summer.”
What next?
The EU’s legal response is expected to come in two parts. First, there is talk of it launching “infringement proceedings” against the UK, which could see it being brought before the European Court of Justice. That could lead to fines or trade sanctions. It is also expected to issue a formal notice, paving the way for independent arbitration.
The European Parliament has postponed setting a date for ratifying the Brexit agreement in response to the row. Brussels is due to make key decisions on post-Brexit access for the City of London to EU markets in the coming weeks.