We need bridges, not borders with Britain
MICHEL Barnier’s supposedly ‘tough line’ that he took last week when declaring that a hard Border is inevitable on the island of Ireland if the UK leaves the customs union should come as no surprise.
It has been made absolutely clear to Theresa May’s government on countless occasions that without a trade deal, we are all heading into dangerous territory, especially on the island of Ireland.
Nothing has changed in the EU or Irish position here. Last December, the EU and UK signed up to a comprehensive agreement which makes it clear that an ambitious and comprehensive trade deal is the top priority for all sides.
Listening to the Taoiseach meeting the British PM in Northern Ireland last week, he simply reminded us all that a new trade deal is still the EU’s and the UK’s primary objective.
Leo Varadkar hasn’t over-spun anything in his description of the conclusions of the phase one. He is simply reminding the British of their commitments.
While some opposition voices want to play politics with this, it’s a very dangerous game to play when EU unity is required as never before, if we are to achieve the least-bad outcome.
We cannot fool ourselves that if the UK sticks to its rather inexplicable position of leaving the single market and the customs union, that things will somehow work themselves out. That is not realistic.
If we have different customs arrangements north and south of the Border, there will have to be some form of checking for goods leaving or coming into Ireland.
However, there is still time and space to guide the UK government into a better negotiating position that is in the interest of both countries.
We know relations between the UK and EU 27 are pretty much at an all-time low. So bridge-building between both sides in phase two of these negotiations is required. Ireland needs to help that process and facilitate the bridge-building. Maybe, just maybe, Boris Johnson’s latest speech, a rather forlorn hope to reach out, helps to reposition this debate from war to peace.
Phase two will really define our new trading relationship with the UK and with the EU. While we are a strongly pro-European nation with a pro-European future, there is an important responsibility to protect those long-standing cultural and economic ties with the UK as we move to a new type of relationship. Between now and March, the main focus will be on getting agreement on a transition period. Despite Barnier’s comments that a “transition period
not a given”, the reality is that both sides are not very far away and there is general consensus that the transition period should be around two years and all existing arrangements should apply.
But politics can always get messy. And going by the recent history of these negotiations, a breakdown of talks can never be ruled out.
But the role of the Irish political and diplomatic system throughout phase two must be to ensure talks continue in good faith. We have to do our best to ensure the transition period is agreed by March and talks can start immediately on the future trading relationship. Even with the transition period, we have a seriously tight time-frame in which to negotiate a comprehensive trade deal with the UK.
May is expected to set out her position more clearly in March – let’s hope this is not just a repeat of her Lancaster House speech. They really need to tell us what they want. Politics remains in a state of flux in the UK. The Tory party is in almost open warfare.
Chancellor Philip Hammond, not on the speakers list in the coming weeks, has said Brexit shall only mean that the UK economy moves “very modestly apart” from the EU’s.
However, pro-Brexit Tories are publicly battling with Hammond and others on how hard or how soft Brexit should be.
It is not the job of the Irish Government to solve British domestic politics, but we can help to soothe relations between the EU and the UK as we get to the crunch trade talks. It is in Ireland’s interest that the UK economy remains strong after Brexit. A strong UK economy is also in the EU’s interest.
IF the EU feels it is negotiating with a serious counterpart, then there is scope for a unique and mutually beneficial deal.
The EU has developed unique relationships with various territories and regions all over the world.
Gibraltar, for example, is part of the EU yet not part of the customs union or the EU Vat area. Iceland, Switzerland and Norway are not part of the EU, yet have access to the single market.
The EU has also been able to negotiate comprehensive trade deals with countries like Canada and Japan with different levels of trade access.
The point is that the EU is in the business of making special arrangements with partners, but there has to be willingness on both sides to make that happen.
Ireland has a special role to play in helping all sides achieve agreement rather then the doomsday of a cliff edge.
Maybe, just maybe, Boris Johnson’s latest speech helps to reposition this debate