The UK government has set out steps for scrapping Northern Ireland Protocol. It has lined up a new law that would effectively override parts of a deal. The new law would change the so-called “Northern Ireland protocol” parts. This plan of the UK government creates tensions between the UK and the EU. This political game of the Johnson and Westminster administration began after Sinn Fein won the election in Northern Ireland. This political game aims to save the Unionists in Ireland. Britain sacrifices its agreement with the EU for the salvation of Unionist parties in Northern Ireland.
Northern Ireland Protocol
As indirect says, the UK left the European Union (EU) on 31 January 2020 (i.e., Brexit. During negotiations, the EU and UK agreed on Northern Ireland Protocol. According to the protocol, there would be no new checks on goods crossing the border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. As a result of the protocol, Northern Ireland has remained in the EU’s single market for goods. England, Scotland and Wales have left the EU’s single market for goods.
As the BBC says, the protocol agreed that there would be no checking of goods at the Irish border. However, any inspections and document checks would be conducted between Northern Ireland and Great Britain (England, Scotland and Wales). These take place at Northern Ireland’s ports. UK government also agreed that Northern Ireland would keep following EU rules on product standards.
Scrapping Northern Ireland Protocol and Good Friday Agreement
An important issue is the effect of the Northern Ireland Protocol on the Good Friday Agreement. According to the BBC, the border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland is a sensitive issue. This is a sensitive issue because of Northern Ireland’s troubled political history. In Brexit negotiations, there was a fear that cameras or border posts on this border could lead to instability. The UK and the EU agreed that protecting the Good Friday Agreement was an absolute priority. The Good Friday Agreement took place in 1998 and led to peace in Northern Ireland. Therefore, the UK and the EU signed the Northern Ireland Protocol for the Brexit withdrawal agreement.
According to The New York Times, the British foreign secretary, Liz Truss, said in Parliament, “the protocol had disrupted trade between mainland Britain and Northern Ireland. She said this destabilizes the power-sharing agreement that has preserved peace in the North for nearly a quarter-century”. Thus, the protocol threatens peace in Northern Ireland and the Good Friday Agreement.
Northern Ireland’s unionists and Northern Ireland protocol
As it says in the New York Times, the protocol is fiercely opposed by unionist parties. The unionists favour keeping Northern Ireland as part of the United Kingdom. They complain that the rules drive a wedge between the North and mainland Britain. According to CNBC, the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) says UK lawmakers must abolish the protocol. The party argues that there is a customs border across the Irish Sea, which undermines Northern Ireland’s place within the UK.
Unionist’s withdrawal from Power-sharing government
Unionists’ withdrawal from the power-sharing government is a pretext for the UK government to scrap Northern Ireland Protocol. AS CNBC SAYS, the DUP came second behind Sinn Fein in the 5 May elections. Sinn Fein, which accepts the protocol, has the right to nominate the executive’s first minister. Under a power-sharing agreement introduced in the 1990s, other parties could not form a new government without the DUP. The first minister and deputy minister must be one unionist and one nationalist. However, the DUP has refused to re-enter the executive until the protocol is rewritten.
Scrapping Northern Ireland Protocol
Scrapping Northern Ireland Protocol is a clear violation of Brexit rules. As VOA says, Britain has insisted it is up to the European Union to unblock political paralysis in Northern Ireland. Britain has provoked anger on both sides of the Atlantic with a plan to overhaul the Northern Ireland Protocol. According to the New York Times, the UK says it may scrap Northern Ireland Trade Rules. The decision sets Britain on a collision course with the European Union. According to CNBC, Maros Sefcovic has said that it is “simply not acceptable” for Britain to make such threats. Maros Sefcovic is European Commission Vice-President. He added that it is of “serious concern” that Johnson’s government intends to start a path of unilateral action.
Final remark
Britain has set out steps to break the deadlock with the European Union on post-Brexit trade with Northern Ireland. The UK may go ahead with unilateral changes. The EU says, In this case, it “will need to respond with all measures at its disposal” (Aljazeera). Johnson renegotiated and signed up for the protocol. However, he is considering whether to make changes to the deal. This is a move which would risk retaliation from the EU and potentially kickstart a trade war (CNBC).
The UK government is scrapping Northern Ireland Protocol to achieve its political goals. Johnson intends to satisfy the Unionists to maintain the unity of Northern Ireland with Britain. Britain sacrifices the agreement with the EU to help the Unionist parties in Northern Ireland. The UK government wants to start a trade war amid a power-sharing crisis in Northern Ireland. Maybe, the Westminster government is making a plan with the unionists to interrupt the power-sharing government after Sinn Fein’s victory.
