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The UK has declined to say it will withdraw legislation that violates the Northern Ireland Protocol, according to a European Commission vice president after a key meeting of EU and UK officials today.
Maroš Šefčovič, EU representative in the EU-UK Joint Committee, said he had reiterated the EU’s insistence that the legislation be withdrawn.
However, he told reporters that his opposite number Michael Gove “gave him no indication” that the UK was prepared to withdraw the contentious elements of the Internal Market Act.
Mr Šefčovič would not like to know whether the EU will take legal action against the UK if the legislation is not withdrawn by Wednesday this week, the deadline set by Mr Šefčovič earlier this month.
When asked whether legal action would be taken if the UK did not meet the deadline, Mr Šefčovič told reporters: “I reminded the UK government that the Withdrawal Agreement contains a number of legal mechanisms and remedies for address the violation of the legal obligations contained in the text.
“The EU will not hesitate to use them. When we will do it, how we will proceed, you will have to give us a little time and will inform you in due course.”
He said that full trust between the two parties will not be restored unless the UK withdraws the controversial clauses of the internal market bill.
The Commission Vice-President said that the EU side had told the UK delegation during the Joint Committee meeting in Brussels that time was running out for the UK to complete the necessary IT infrastructure and systems to ensure that the Protocol could enter into force on January 1, when the Brexit transition period comes to an end.
Under the Withdrawal Agreement, the UK is obliged to implement controls and controls on goods moving between Great Britain and Northern Ireland from 1 January.
The Joint Committee is tasked with implementing and, where possible, simplifying such controls.
Mr. Šefčovič said: “It is necessary to work long before the transition period ends in less than 100 days.
“The window of opportunity to implement the operational measures necessary to make it work is closing rapidly.”
He warned that the UK was “a long way off” from what the EU could accept, when it came to ensuring that checks and balances could occur in Northern Ireland ports.
He said the Withdrawal Agreement should be “implemented, not renegotiated, allowed to be unilaterally changed, ignored or not applied.”
The Internal Market Bill would give a UK minister the power to override elements of the Protocol, such as the need for exit summary declarations on goods moving between Northern Ireland and the UK, and that the UK government United decide unilaterally which goods move in the opposite direction. The address would be considered “at risk” of crossing the border and, therefore, would be subject to tariffs when entering the north.
Mr Šefčovič said that the EU had been working with the UK to try to address their concerns on these issues.
He said that both parties had agreed that there should be a meeting of the Specialized Subcommittee, which deals with the technical work of the Protocol, should meet in “early October” and that its work should feed another meeting of the Joint Committee in the middle of the month.
In a statement issued after the meeting, the UK government said: “The UK reiterated that the measures set out in the UK Internal Market Bill are designed to create a ‘safety net’ to ensure that Northern Ireland communities are protected, and it is clear that these measures will not be withdrawn.
“The UK remains committed to continued constructive engagement with the EU through more Joint Committee meetings and looks forward to making progress on all issues.”
Meanwhile, the EU rejected the British government’s attempts to intensify and accelerate negotiations to reach a future trade agreement in mid-October, as RTÉ News has understood.
The ninth round of negotiations on future relations will begin tomorrow in Brussels, with both sides disagreeing on the prospects for a breakthrough.
Late last week, Downing Street informed reporters that there was growing optimism about progress in future relationship negotiations, with only a few weeks of talks remaining.
It is understood that during the informal discussions, UK chief negotiator David Frost pressured his counterpart Michel Barnier to get the process to enter the so-called tunnel as soon as possible, the final period of sealed negotiations that precede a future treaty. Of relationship.
However, two major sources have told RTÉ News that Barnier refused to accept such an escalation for two reasons.
First, the EU believes that the UK has not yet made enough concessions on the so-called level playing field, including on the issue of state aid and fisheries.
Second, Brussels believes that the deadline is late October, not October 14, the deadline that British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has set, which is when EU leaders will meet for a summit.
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