Brexit and the Northern Ireland Protocol threaten the identity of the Unionists in Northern Ireland. The Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) seems helpless in redefining its existential nature in post-Brexit. This is due to the problems that London has made. Is there any justification for the Unionists to support the British government? Only party interests are at work. Unionists should not put their party interests ahead of the interests of the whole of Irish society.
Northern Ireland Protocol
According to European Commission, in Brexit negotiations, both the UK and the EU acknowledged the unique circumstances of Ireland. They recognised the necessity of safeguarding the 1998 Good Friday (Belfast) Agreement. They avoided a hard border on the island of Ireland and protected North-South cooperation. This solution was found in the Protocol on Ireland and Northern Ireland. The protocol enables the smooth functioning of the all-island economy and safeguards the Good Friday Agreement. It ensures the integrity of the EU’s Single Market for goods.
The BBC says that the protocol allows lorries to deliver goods from Northern Ireland into the Republic of Ireland. They do this without paperwork and customs checks. Before Brexit, both the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland were part of the EU. They automatically followed the same EU trade rules, which meant no need for checks. However, there was a need for a new arrangement after Northern Ireland (as part of the UK) left the EU. The EU has strict food and medicine rules and requires border checks when certain goods arriving from non-EU countries. To solve the problem, the UK and the EU negotiated the Northern Ireland Protocol as part of the Brexit agreement.
Main elements of Northern Ireland Protocol
As it says in New York Times, the protocol aims to resolve one of the most complex issues that Brexit created. The problem is the border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. Northern Ireland is part of the UK, and the Republic of Ireland remains part of the EU.
The complex issue of the Northern Ireland Protocol includes some primary elements. European Commission refers to the main aspects as follows. After the transition period, Northern Ireland is subject to limited EU rules. The rules are about the Single Market for goods and the Customs Union. There may be goods entering Northern Ireland from the rest of the UK or other third countries. Necessary checks and controls must take place on these goods at Points of Entry. EU customs duties apply to goods entering Northern Ireland from different parts of the UK or any other third country. However, there are no customs duties for goods that are not at risk of moving to the EU.
EU’s Concessions on Northern Ireland
According to New York Times, Britain is demanding an end to the post-Brexit rules known as the Northern Ireland protocol. For critics of Mr Johnson, this demand shows his lack of trustworthiness and his willingness to break international commitments. However, the EU sees the rules as crucial for protecting its single market. There is a proposal from Brussels. The proposal says they would reduce checks on food and animal products from mainland Britain to Northern Ireland by 80 per cent. They would reduce customs paperwork for shipments of many goods. Moreover, they would ensure the flow of medicines.
Similarly, in The Irish Times, the European Commission has offered to make changes to the rules. The changes would scrap checks and a large volume of paperwork on goods entering Northern Ireland from Britain. It is also proposing to allow the distribution of medicines made in Britain in the North. The proposals would lead to an 80 per cent reduction in checks on food products coming from Britain. This includes only the goods they sell in Northern Ireland’s shops and supermarkets. There would also be a 50 per cent reduction in completing customs forms for goods entering Britain.
Unionists’ stance against Northern Ireland protocol
The protocol has caused dissatisfaction among Unionists. According to The Irish Times, the protocol creates a new trade border between Northern Ireland and Great Britain. Unionists argue that this undermined the North’s place in the UK. Businesses complained about the red tape associated with that new economic border.
According to BBC, first minister Paul Givan resigned as part of the DUP protests against the Northern Island Protocol. The DUP is part of Northern Ireland’s power-sharing government. The government says the checks represent a threat to Northern Ireland’s place within the UK. Givan’s resignation came a day after one of his party’s ministers ordered checks to be stopped at Northern Ireland’s ports.
As it says in France 24, Prime Minister Boris Johnson finally agreed with the EU in October 2019. Then the DUP expressed outrage about the customs frontier in the Irish Sea. “It isn’t Brexit for the whole of the United Kingdom,” the party’s deputy leader Nigel Dodds told journalists at the time. The deputy’s words show that he was not satisfied with Brexit.
Unionists’ identity
According to The Irish Times, alliance leader Naomi Long talked on a recent episode of the BBC show, Spotlight. He said, “Nobody in Northern Ireland will be less British due to the protocol. Where you get your sausages from doesn’t define your identity,” Contrary to Naomi Long’s ideas, business and customs rules can influence Northern Ireland’s people’s attitudes and feelings of identity.
According to France 24, Jonathan Powell was one of the few voices in the British establishment to warn about Brexit. He said that Johnson’s Brexit deal posed a severe threat to Northern Irish unionists’ interests. Jonathan Powell is ex-PM Tony Blair’s chief negotiator for the 1998 Good Friday Agreement. He added, “The hard border in the Irish Sea is a real problem for them”. “It will grow wider over time as the UK diverges in terms of regulation and as we introduce new tariffs”. Powell continued, “And that widening border will threaten their British identity.” we can conclude that the protocol of Northern Ireland can weaken Northern Ireland’s people’s sense of belonging to Britain.
Brexit did not consider the interests of Northern Ireland. It seems that the DUP has lost its British identity. The people of Northern Island have been the victims of Brexit. There is no motivation and no benefit for them to be part of the UK. The Unionists should consider Irish people’s interests rather than their party’s interests.
