The Taoiseach and the EU has warned that Britain must honour the entire Withdrawal Agreement after allegations that Boris Johnson is trying to “get around” the Northern Ireland part of the deal.
It was reported at the weekend that UK officials are seeking to evade Irish Sea checks on goods going between Britain and the North.
Leo Varadkar said yesterday that the Withdrawal Agreement is an international treaty and he expects the UK to “honour that in full”.
He said there can be “no backsliding” and urged Mr Johnson’s Government to focus on the next phase of negotiating a free trade agreement.
He said: “We totally understand why they may want to minimise any checks at the ports and airports in Northern Ireland, we want to do that too, but the agreement clearly says if there have to be checks anywhere, they would happen at the ports and airports in Northern Ireland rather than on the land border between north and south.
“So I am saying to the British Government, there can be no backsliding on the Withdrawal Agreement, let’s not even go there and let’s focus instead on what should be the next phase, which is negotiating a free trade agreement between the European Union and Ireland and the UK so we can protect jobs and our economy.”
The Sunday Times reported that officials in Taskforce Europe are seeking to evade Irish Sea checks on goods passing from Great Britain to Northern Ireland.
The British Government insisted the UK would “comply with our obligations” under the deal struck with Brussels, and said it would require only “limited changes” to Great Britain-Northern Ireland trade.
But Brussels said the Withdrawal Agreement must be effectively implemented - and cautioned that respecting legal obligations would be “very important” for establishing trust between the UK and EU in future negotiations.
Dana Spinant, deputy chief spokeswoman of the European Commission, said: “The Withdrawal Agreement has been signed and ratified by both sides and as such it must be effectively implemented.
“That includes of course the protocol on Northern Ireland and all its constituent parts.
“Of course in this context, as in all others, we would expect our partners to respect their international obligations under their national law and under international law - that includes of course the Withdrawal Agreement, which has legal force.
Northern Ireland Secretary of State Brandon Lewis has insisted there will not be a border down the Irish Sea.
He said: “We have always said we want to make sure there is unfettered access between GB and Northern Ireland, we’ve always as a government obviously gone by the rule of law and we will continue to do that.
“We want to make sure that the United Kingdom is one whole union, and one that is good for business across the United Kingdom.
“We’ve always said there will not be a border down the Irish Sea, there will be unfettered access for business.”
