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Unionist politicians have responded with annoyance and dismay after a junior Sinn Féin minister told a Stormont committee that there will be new physical border posts at Northern Ireland ports.
An “Irish sea border is now a certainty,” Ulster Unionist Party leader Steve Aiken said Thursday, following comments by Sinn Fein minister Declan Kearney that border posts will be created to deal with trade that enters Northern Ireland from Great Britain.
Mr. Kearney told the scrutiny committee of the Executive Office of the Assembly that “the British government has confirmed that it will urgently establish detailed plans with the Executive, which includes physical posts at ports of entry.”
Mr Kearney informed former MEP Sinn Féin Martina Anderson that the British government had indicated that “the delivery of that infrastructure should start as soon as possible.”
“The British government has indicated that it will provide advice on the requirements and funding to implement them.”
Ms. Anderson, in her questioning of Mr. Kearney on Wednesday, indicated that the posts would be in Belfast, Larne and Warrenpoint and would be designed to accommodate additional customs officers and veterinarians, who would handle the livestock.
Checks
While it seemed implicit in the EU-UK deal that allowed Brexit to have some goods and livestock from Britain checked, unionist politicians have campaigned against any border in Ireland’s ports of North.
Ulster Unionist Party leader Steve Aiken said a “border of the Irish Sea” was “now a certainty.”
He said that his party had warned that “this was sadly inevitable” if the British government continued with the agreement it reached with the European Union.
“It is unforgivable that we are finished here,” said Mr. Aiken. Despite all the big talk and bravado, Northern Ireland will now have to deal with border checkpoints at our ports and airports.
“This places a great burden on companies here, which are expected to be fully prepared for the changes in just over seven months, amid the crisis many are currently facing due to Covid-19,” he added.
Mr Aiken said that the “intransigence” of the EU also played an important role in creating the current situation.
‘Verve’
Leader of the traditional unionist voice, Jim Allister, said Kearney’s “claim” on new positions suggested that “trade unionists in the executive face significant proof of their mettle.”
A British government spokesman said, “It has always been clear that there will be requirements for live and agri-food animals, based on what is already happening in ports like Larne and Belfast.”
“We want to work with Northern Ireland companies and the Executive to ensure that the new administrative procedures are more efficient and effective,” added the spokesperson.
SDLP Brexit spokeswoman Claire Hanna said controls at Northern Ireland ports should not surprise us as it was long clear that this should happen. “This is an inevitable consequence of Brexit,” he said.
Ms. Hanna said the proposals gave “a little comfort” that if there were controls at Northern Ireland ports, North-South trade could go smoothly.
She said the proposals contradicted the British government’s previous commitments on “unrestricted” trade in the Irish Sea after Brexit.
“The only way to minimize controls in the Irish Sea is to smooth out Brexit overall,” added Ms. Hanna.
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