A Brexiteer solution for the border impasse

It’s an excellent sign that Brexiteers are trying to find realistic, practical solutions to the Irish border problem, addressing the issues that the EU claims to be so worried about. The EU says, either out of cynicism or ideological rigidity, that it will not sign off on any post-Brexit customs arrangement that erects what it defines as a hard border between Ireland and Northern Ireland. The UK Government, rightly, insists that it cannot let Northern Ireland remain in the customs union separate from the UK. This would be like cutting the country in two.

On this page, Iain Duncan Smith offers two concrete proposals to get us through the impasse: let the EU conduct customs checks with its own officials stationed across UK ports and airports on goods bound for the single market. The UK could also enforce EU product regulations directly on the portion of UK companies’ output destined for export to the single market. These are significant concessions, yes, but they would at least move the negotiations in the right direction – towards a Canada-style trade deal that takes the whole of the UK out of the customs union in one piece.

The alternative that No 10 is said to entertain is a backstop option of remaining within the customs union indefinitely, which would be an unforgivable betrayal of the referendum result. The Government has reached this position thanks to two political developments. First, its original Chequers proposal has flopped: it was overcomplicated, kept Britain in hock to EU rules, limited the ability to do fresh trade deals and wasn’t acceptable to Brussels anyway. Secondly, Labour’s position has hardened against Chequers and towards remaining in the customs union, which affects parliamentary calculations.

Theresa May is probably prepared to compromise on Chequers, but there’s a good way of doing that and a bad one. The latter would see the UK offer even more concessions to the EU, making the proposal even less palatable to Brexiteers. The former would see a new model emerge, a compromise between Canada and Chequers. The Brexiteers are to be commended for their proposals. Now it’s Mrs May’s turn to think again.