Northern Ireland’s Democratic Unionist Party dislikes the Brexit treaty for undermining its ties with “the mainland”
, part of the Brexit withdrawal treaty that keeps the province in the EU’s single market for goods, thereby creating a customs border in the Irish Sea.
First, it would be an undemocratic response to a new assembly that, says Katy Hayward of Queen’s University Belfast, has a 54-36 majority of members in favour of keeping a tweaked protocol. This is not a body that will vote down the protocol when the treaty allows it to in 2024. Second, disowning a treaty that Boris Johnson himself negotiated, signed and triumphantly ratified 30 months ago would break international law.
For despite Ms Truss’s impatience after months of such talks, they could yet help. The EU offered concessions last October that it said would eliminate up to 80% of checks at the sea border. It has accepted free movement of medicines. More could be done to reduce customs inspections and facilitate freer transport of pets and online deliveries. And the government could move towards closer alignment with EU food-safety standards, pleasing British farmers.
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