The new German government has made clear that it backs the EU’s opposition to overhauling the Northern Irish component of the Brexit deal as talks resume today.
Lord Frost, the Brexit minister, will meet his EU counterpart, Maros Sefcovic, in London to discuss progress. No breakthrough is expected but both sides say that there have been advances, especially on medicines access.
Germany’s new leaders favour a tough European response if Britain opts out of elements of the Northern Ireland protocol, which prevents a hard Irish border but puts a trade border between Great Britain and Northern Ireland to ensure goods meet EU rules. Britain wants significant changes.
Germany’s three-way coalition deal between the Social Democrats, Greens and Free Democrats suggests that the parties will largely follow Angela Merkel’s stance on Brexit and the protocol. It commits Berlin to “a common European policy towards the United Kingdom” and to seeking “close bilateral co-operation within this framework”.
However, it adds: “We insist on full compliance with the agreements that have been concluded, in particular with regard to the Northern Ireland protocol and the Good Friday agreement. In the event of non-compliance with the agreed standards and procedures, we are committed to the consistent application of all agreed measures and countermeasures.”
Government sources said that they expected Olaf Scholz, Merkel’s successor as chancellor, to largely follow her policy on Brexit. They suggested that he was keen to stand firmly with France in any dispute with the UK. They added that negotiations on the protocol were “almost entirely a matter for the [European] Commission” and that the British government had not tried to lobby any foreign capitals for a change in tack.
Frost said that he was committed to the equality and human rights safeguards within the Northern Ireland protocol and that any changes would be limited to trade. Amnesty International had written to Frost expressing concern about article 2 of the protocol, which demands “no diminution” of the extensive rights provisions that were enshrined in Northern Ireland by the Good Friday agreement.
So they want full compliance. Well A16 is full compliance, so everyone is happy.
But the whole point of article 16 was to reject the NIP whilst complying wasn’t it?
A16 is intended for implementing temporary and limited measures to cope with increasing unexpected problems whilst entitling the other party to take corrective measure, not to rewrite the treaty.
The EU has shown a willingness to be flexible in the implementing of the NIP but it’s unlikely to want to renegotiate the treaty itself, not least because the UK government is unable to propose a viable alternative to the NIP.
I understand Johnson is facing pressure from his own MP’s to fulfil his promise to them that he’d renage on the NIP but that isn’t the EU’s problem.
The EU is perfectly within its right to expect the UK to comply with its treaty obligations and take whatever actions are legally permitted should the UK continue to fail to do so.
Yawn, good thing nobody respects what the German government has to say.
They are not yet the new government. More than 100,000 green Part member have still to vote on the coalition contract.
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The new German government has made clear that it backs the EU’s opposition to overhauling the Northern Irish component of the Brexit deal as talks resume today.
Lord Frost, the Brexit minister, will meet his EU counterpart, Maros Sefcovic, in London to discuss progress. No breakthrough is expected but both sides say that there have been advances, especially on medicines access.
Germany’s new leaders favour a tough European response if Britain opts out of elements of the Northern Ireland protocol, which prevents a hard Irish border but puts a trade border between Great Britain and Northern Ireland to ensure goods meet EU rules. Britain wants significant changes.
Germany’s three-way coalition deal between the Social Democrats, Greens and Free Democrats suggests that the parties will largely follow Angela Merkel’s stance on Brexit and the protocol. It commits Berlin to “a common European policy towards the United Kingdom” and to seeking “close bilateral co-operation within this framework”.
However, it adds: “We insist on full compliance with the agreements that have been concluded, in particular with regard to the Northern Ireland protocol and the Good Friday agreement. In the event of non-compliance with the agreed standards and procedures, we are committed to the consistent application of all agreed measures and countermeasures.”
Government sources said that they expected Olaf Scholz, Merkel’s successor as chancellor, to largely follow her policy on Brexit. They suggested that he was keen to stand firmly with France in any dispute with the UK. They added that negotiations on the protocol were “almost entirely a matter for the [European] Commission” and that the British government had not tried to lobby any foreign capitals for a change in tack.
Frost said that he was committed to the equality and human rights safeguards within the Northern Ireland protocol and that any changes would be limited to trade. Amnesty International had written to Frost expressing concern about article 2 of the protocol, which demands “no diminution” of the extensive rights provisions that were enshrined in Northern Ireland by the Good Friday agreement.
So they want full compliance. Well A16 is full compliance, so everyone is happy.
But the whole point of article 16 was to reject the NIP whilst complying wasn’t it?
A16 is intended for implementing temporary and limited measures to cope with increasing unexpected problems whilst entitling the other party to take corrective measure, not to rewrite the treaty.
The EU has shown a willingness to be flexible in the implementing of the NIP but it’s unlikely to want to renegotiate the treaty itself, not least because the UK government is unable to propose a viable alternative to the NIP.
I understand Johnson is facing pressure from his own MP’s to fulfil his promise to them that he’d renage on the NIP but that isn’t the EU’s problem.
The EU is perfectly within its right to expect the UK to comply with its treaty obligations and take whatever actions are legally permitted should the UK continue to fail to do so.
Yawn, good thing nobody respects what the German government has to say.
They are not yet the new government. More than 100,000 green Part member have still to vote on the coalition contract.