The European Commission threatened the British government with legal action after introducing a bill that risked the Northern Ireland protocol. Britain’s government has unveiled legislation that would unilaterally change post–Brexit trade rules for Northern Ireland. Some British legislators expressed their opposition to Johnson’s government decision, considering it to conflict with international laws. The proposed legislation calls for the abolition of customs inspections on certain goods in the United Kingdom to Northern Ireland. London’s decision contradicts the agreement that Boris Johnson’s government signed with the European Union less than two years ago. The British government maintains that the draft is perfectly legal, but the European Union has threatened to retaliate. Such a threat can lead to a trade war between the parties.
UK’s bargaining over Northern Ireland Protocol
Post-Brexit disputes over the Northern Ireland Protocol had led to tensions between London and Brussels and remain unresolved. London has called for legal changes to the protocol, ignoring repeated requests from Brussels and Dublin to avoid unilateral changes. Due to the failure to reach an agreement in the disputes over the Northern Ireland Protocol with Brussels, England has recently presented a bill that would unilaterally change this protocol which has seriously angered the European authorities.
Britain has recently announced that it wants to unilaterally change the Brexit rules for Northern Ireland as agreed with Brussels. The British Conservative government has published a bill to suspend parts of the Northern Ireland Protocol.
Truss defends UK’s decision.
Liz Truss has announced she wants to end Northern Ireland’s customs deal with the EU. The British Foreign Secretary has evaluated the situation very seriously. Truss wants to cancel many parts of the Northern Ireland Protocol in the dispute over customs regulations between the UK and the EU. She has concluded that the negotiations with the European Union have reached an impasse, and “Maroš Šefčovič “, European Commission vice-president, does not have the plan and the mission to reach an acceptable agreement.
Stressing that this action does not violate any law, the British Foreign Secretary said: “We have real problems in Northern Ireland, and with this law, we are returning to the principles of the Good Friday Agreement, which aims to establish stability.” Truss also said: “at the same time, the United Kingdom protects the internal market of the European Union, adheres to the main principles of the Northern Ireland Protocol and moves within the framework of international law”.
Johnson ignores criticisms
“The proposed changes are simply implementable,” British Prime Minister Boris Johnson told reporters, ignoring the criticism. He added: “Frankly, these changes are only simple and trivial changes compared to the grand dimensions of the agreement.” He claimed that his government’s commitments are, above all, to the Good Friday Agreement and stability in Northern Ireland. Johnson warned about the EU’s backlash to the UK’s legislative proposals, saying: “After all, it’s all about the details.” We can cut Bureaucracy at the border between Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
Violation of international law
The European Union and especially the Republic of Ireland consider unilateral changes in the Brexit treaty to violate international law. In the dispute over Brexit rules for Northern Ireland, the European Union is threatening London with the consequences of such an action.
In response to England, the European Commission is launching three legal proceedings against this country, two new and one related to the previous one, which was kept silent and will be found again. The complaint of the European Commission can lead to the imposition of a fine by the European Court of Justice against England.
EU’s position
European authorities have reacted sharply and critically to this position of England. The EU Commission has clarified its work on a renegotiation call, following speculation that London is about to renege on the Brexit deal on Northern Ireland. Maroš Šefčovič declared that the Northern Ireland Protocol is an integral part of the positive and stable relationship between the EU and the UK.
EU’s determination to take legal action
Emphasising that Brussels is ready for further negotiations on the agreement’s implementation, Šefčovič said: “However, to do this, London must show the same level of will and creativity”. EU Brexit negotiator Maroš Šefčovič announced that the EU plans to take legal action due to the recent move of England regarding the Northern Ireland Protocol.
Šefčovič said that the Northern Ireland protocol bill would seriously damage the trust and mutual respect between the EU and the UK and added: “This protocol has created deep uncertainty and casts a shadow on our overall cooperation; all this is happening at a time. Respecting international agreements has never been more important than this.
“This is why the Commission decided to take legal action against the UK for not complying with important parts of the Northern Ireland Protocol,” he continued. There is no doubt that there is no legal and political justification for unilaterally changing an international agreement. “Even providing conditions for unilaterally changing an international agreement is a violation of international law, so the UK’s action is illegal.” The European official did not consider renegotiation as an option and spoke of the agreement of the entire European Union in this regard. He warned London against taking unilateral actions.
EU’s chiefs’ position
German Chancellor, Belgian Prime Minister, and the Irish government in Dublin have warned London not to take unilateral steps. Olaf Scholz and Alexander de Croo warned the British government to end the Northern Ireland customs rules agreed upon in Brexit, the so-called Northern Ireland Protocol. After bilateral talks with De Croo in Berlin, Scholz emphasised that this protocol is a good rule. He stressed: No one should ignore or violate the regulations that we have agreed upon.
The German chancellor also said that the European Union Commission is ready to resolve the problems in implementing the so-called Northern Ireland Protocol with the utmost pragmatism. “But this should be the path we continue to follow”, Scholz said. De Croo also warned London about unilateral actions and said: “Our message is unambiguous, and this is what we have agreed on.” The Belgian Prime Minister also announced that the termination of the protocols would make all Brexit rules obsolete. Moreover, Irish Deputy Prime Minister Leo Varadkar said it is an international agreement. London must fulfil its obligations.
Conclusion
The purpose of the Northern Ireland Protocol is to ensure that EU law applies in Ireland without the need for strict border controls between the EU member state and British Northern Ireland. As a result, control of the movement of goods has been transferred to the sea border between the UK mainland and Northern Ireland. Britain wants to change the protocol signed during Brexit. In this regard, negotiations between London and Brussels have been going on for a long time without success. European Union’s legal action against England was triggered in 2021, but the Europeans had temporarily stopped it. Now, if London does not provide an answer to Brussels within two months, the relevant case will be sent to the European Court of Justice.
