EU says it will not renegotiate Protocol despite DUP threats

THE European Union has ruled out renegotiating the Northern Ireland Protocol, the day after the Democratic Unionist Party threatened to collapse the Stormont executive unless the Brexit treaty was torn up.

Maros Sefcovic said he was “acutely aware” of unionist objections to the protocol, which created a customs border between Britain and Northern Ireland to avoid a hard border on the island of Ireland.

The European commission vicepresident said in Belfast, “The protocol is not the problem. On the contrary, it is the only solution we have.

“A renegotiation of the protocol – as the UK government is suggesting – would mean instability, uncertainty and unpredictability in Northern Ireland,” he said.

Mr Sefcovic also called on Britain and the DUP to drop demands that the European Court of Justice be stripped of its role as the final arbiter of the interpretation of EU rules in the province.

“Doing this would effectively mean cutting Northern Ireland off from the EU’S single market and related opportunities,” warned the Slovak official before rebutting DUP claims that the protocol was harming Northern Ireland’s economy.

He said the province’s unique access to the UK market and the single market made it a “powerful magnet for foreign investment” which translated into jobs and growth.

“This way you have jam on both sides of the bread,” he said. He added that the focus of UK-EU negotiations had to be on limiting the impact of the protocol on “everyday life” while maintaining Northern Ireland’s access to the single market.

He added: “But while we will continue looking for solutions to minimise the effects of Brexit on your everyday lives, we will never be able to remove them entirely – such are the consequences of Brexit and of the choices of the UK government.”

He added, “We are seeking solutions that work for all, including those opposed to the protocol [...] I know it is possible for us to work together, if rhetoric on both sides is dialled down.”

On Monday, the UK and EU agreed a standstill deal on the protocol to win space and time for negotiations over the treaty. Various grace periods delaying new checks on, for example, British chilled meats and parcels, were due to expire at the end of the month.

‘Northern Ireland’s unique access to UK market and single market... gives it jam on both sides of the bread’