How do we solve a problem like the Northern Ireland Protocol?

By Vincent Carroll-Battaglino

In the debates surrounding the Brexit referendum in 2016, the delicate situation that would surface with Northern Ireland was frequently mentioned as intractable. And it has proven to be just that.

Put simply, Northern Ireland is part of the now non-EU United Kingdom but many political actors in Northern Ireland perceive the Good Friday Agreement as ensuring unencumbered movement of goods and people over the land border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. The UK Government’s solution, agreed with the EU, was the Northern Ireland Protocol, which introduced checks on goods between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK, which can then proceed south of the border without checks.

Priority was therefore given to the tenets of the Good Friday Agreement, a move intended to preserve political stability, but predictably not without fierce opposition. For the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP), the creation of a “sea border” is unpalatable, as it appears to break Northern Ireland off from the rest of the UK. The party’s leader Jeffrey Donaldson recently said, "The Northern Ireland Protocol and Good Friday Agreement cannot exist together… Parliament can either choose to go forward with the [Good Friday] Agreement and the political institutions and stability in Northern Ireland, or the Protocol, but it can't have both." So strongly does the party feel, that it is refusing to take part in a new devolved administration following last month’s election. Again, this runs into trouble with the Good Friday Agreement – by the requirements of the Agreement, concurrence is needed from all parties for an administration to function. By refusing to take part, the DUP can prevent devolved government from happening.

While the Foreign Secretary Liz Truss has told the DUP to “get on with it”, she is bringing forward changes to the Protocol to make this possible. A Bill published yesterday seeks to allay the DUP demands by allowing goods coming from Great Britain into and staying in Northern Ireland using a “green lane” of no checks and minimal paperwork, while goods destined for Ireland, or the EU via Northern Ireland, would use a “red lane” with continued checks at entry. The pressure will now be back on the DUP to take part in devolved government, now as equal-but-junior partners with Sinn Féin, who became the largest party for the first time. 

For the government, the need to return to power-sharing has ultimately won out. Direct rule is a headache, prevents local policymaking, and increases community tensions. Meanwhile, the EU considers a unilateral change to the Protocol illegal, and Sinn Féin Vice President, Michelle O'Neill, has warned that the new Bill is creating uncertainty for businesses.

The Labour Party has promised to repeal any law which “overrides” provisions of the Protocol. The wider point for Labour is the building of a narrative that between this and the Partygate saga, this government is one that plays by its own rules, not those of the UK or even international law.