[ad_1]
The UK government has admitted that any changes it plans to make to the Brexit deal would violate international law. Johnson’s lead attorney reportedly resigns from his job.
7:57 pm, September 8, 2020
“Yes, it violates international law in a very specific and limited way,” Northern Ireland Secretary of State Brandon Lewis told Parliament in London on Tuesday. It assessed the changes considered by the British government to the provisions on Northern Ireland in the Withdrawal Treaty, which sets the conditions for Britain to leave the EU on January 31, 2020.
According to a Telegraph report, Prime Minister Boris Johnson wants to announce that the Brexit deal is “contradictory” and should be rewritten. A government spokesman did not initially comment on the report. The “Financial Times” had previously written that London would partially question the exit agreement that was already in force.
Chief lawyer throws in the towel
According to one newspaper, the British government’s chief lawyer resigns from his post in the dispute over the Brexit deal. Jonathan Jones is in dispute with Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s office over alleged plans to undermine parts of the deal related to Northern Ireland, the Financial Times reported Tuesday, citing inside information.
Consequently, Jones is “very unhappy” with the decision to change parts of the deal. The government did not initially respond. The British pound fell against the euro after the report was released.
“More realism” demands
Ahead of the new round of negotiations between the EU and Britain on post-Brexit relations, top British negotiator David Frost hardened the tone and called for “more realism” from Brussels. If a deal is to be reached by the end of the year, progress must be made this week, Frost stressed ahead of talks with the EU’s chief negotiator, Michel Barnier, in London.
Frost called for “more realism from the EU regarding our state as an independent state.” If Brussels does not achieve that “in the very limited time that we have left, then we will act on the same terms that the EU has with Australia,” the British threatened.
EU chief negotiator Michel Barnier had previously stressed that London had to keep its promises. “Everything that has been signed must be respected,” Barnier told France Inter radio station on Monday.
European Minister Karoline Edtstadler (ÖVP) criticized London’s ultimatum on Tuesday. The EU-27 aims to maintain the closest possible relationship with Great Britain, the European minister said after talks with the British ambassador and EU representatives in the Federal Chancellery. In the final phase of the negotiations, as before, the unity of the EU27 is crucial. “We are clearly behind Chief Negotiator Michel Barnier and Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, who have already made great strides.”
The German federal government also declared its full support for the EU Commission to insist on the “full implementation of the exit agreement” with regard to Great Britain. This is “the legal basis signed by both parties that must be respected,” said the Foreign Ministry in Berlin.
Two fundamental agreements
According to a report by the Financial Times, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson wants to revoke two fundamental agreements with the EU on Northern Ireland with a new law.
On the one hand, there is state aid to companies in Northern Ireland, which according to the Withdrawal Agreement would continue to be governed by EU rules in the future. According to the newspaper, Johnson wants to relax the British government’s obligation to inform Brussels about such aid funds.
Furthermore, it refers to the requirements for Northern Irish companies when transporting goods to the UK. Under the agreement, companies must declare shipments as exports. According to the “FT” report, Johnson no longer wants to fulfill this obligation in full.
The issue of Northern Ireland is one of the main points of contention between London and Brussels, as Brexit de facto turned the border between Ireland and Northern Ireland into a land border between the EU and the United Kingdom. However, the 1998 Good Friday Agreement, which overcame the bloody and protracted conflict in Northern Ireland, establishes an open border.
Ireland with great concern
The Prime Minister of Ireland, Micheal Martin, was concerned about late requests for changes from the British. “The Withdrawal Agreement is an international treaty and we expect the UK government to implement what has been agreed and abide by it,” he told the Irish Examiner.
The President of the EU Parliament, David Sassoli, warned the British government about changes to the Brexit deal. “Any attempt to change the agreement would have serious consequences,” Sassoli said on Tuesday. “Trust and credibility are crucial,” Sassoli said Tuesday after a meeting with EU Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier in Brussels. Therefore, London must honor the commitments it has made so far. He was “very worried.”
Britain left the EU on February 1. However, until the end of the year it will remain in the EU internal market and in the customs union during a transitional phase. During this time, both parties want to negotiate their future relationships and, in particular, agree to a business deal. Talks about this haven’t progressed in months.
The Northern Ireland Protocol stipulates that the British province will remain in a customs union with Great Britain as of January 1, 2021. Northern Ireland then continues to apply EU internal market rules to avoid border controls with Ireland, a member of the the European Union.
