The UK has admitted there will be no deal this year over the consequences of Boris Johnson ’s Brexit pact in Northern Ireland.
Brexit Minister Lord Frost announced a solution “needs to be found urgently early next year” after missing his own deadline.
Previously he’d claimed it was “an issue for this autumn, to be settled one way or the other”.
It means some checks that were repeatedly delayed will now come in on January 1 in the absence of a deal.
But the UK has still not carried out its threat to trigger ‘Article 16’, a move that would effectively unilaterally suspend the treaty and prompt fresh chaos.
The minister said today: “For as long as there is no agreed solution, we remain ready to use the Article 16 safeguard mechanism if that is the only way to protect the prosperity and stability of Northern Ireland and its people.”
Lord Frost has been mired in talks on the Northern Ireland Protocol, which Boris Johnson signed as part of his Brexit deal with the EU in 2019.
The protocol puts Northern Ireland under many EU rules - forcing British goods to be checked when they cross the Irish Sea.
The UK has accused the EU of being too inflexible over the protocol - while the PM’s critics say it is simply a consequence of his own actions.
Lord Frost said it is "disappointing" that a fresh agreement with the European Union on the operation of the Northern Ireland Protocol has not been reached as talks for this year ended on Friday.
In a tweet, he said he had spoken to European Commission vice-president Maros Sefcovic on Friday and negotiations would resume in the New Year.
And in a statement, he remarked that while there had been "some progress", it had not been "as much, and not as quickly as we had hoped".
A string of checks were due to be kick in on January 1 but most were delayed amid fears the deadline would be missed.
Red tape for EU goods crossing the Channel to Britain was due to start in two phases on October 1 and January 1 after already being delayed once. But several key measures will now only start on July 1 next year.
EU food imports to the UK will now only need to have export health certificates from July 1, 2022, instead of October 1 this year under previous plans.
Physical checks on food and animal 'SPS' products at border control posts, which were due from January 1, will now begin on July 1.
Safety and security declarations on imports will be enjoy the same six-month delay to July.
However, pre-notification of agri-food imports will kick in on January 1.
Meanwhile European Commission vice-president Maros Sefcovic outlined new EU legislation that he said will address concerns about medicine supplies between Great Britain and Northern Ireland being disrupted.
At a press conference in Brussels, Mr Sefcovic said: During my visit to Northern Ireland in September I promised to do whatever it takes to ensure a long lasting solution on medicines, all the more so in the light of the current pandemic.
"I kept my word and today the Commission is delivering in the form of a legislative proposal ensuring that everyone in Northern Ireland has access to the same medicines at the same time as in the rest of the United Kingdom."
The issues surrounding medicines stem from the Northern Ireland Protocol, a part of the Brexit deal which means Northern Ireland remains covered by the EU's pharmaceutical regulations.
As Northern Ireland receives most of its medicines from suppliers in Great Britain, there had been concerns that their movement could be impeded when a grace period expires.
That grace period was originally due to end in January but in the autumn the UK extended it unilaterally - along with other temporary exemptions associated with the protocol - pending efforts to find negotiated solutions to the issues.
