Belgium, (Brussels Morning Newspaper) The announcement of a deal on the Northern Ireland Protocol is welcome and offers hope to people and businesses in the region, according to Seán Kelly MEP and First Vice-Chair of the EU-UK Parliamentary Assembly.
However, Kelly has warned that a political test remains ahead to see if can become reality on the ground.
“The atmosphere in negotiations between the EU and the UK became more positive and pragmatic once British Prime Minister Sunak took office. Today’s announcement is the culmination of much hard work and significant progress at a technical level. Both negotiating teams should be commended on achieving this result”, said MEP Kelly.
“There are some legitimate problems in terms of implementing the Protocol, but nobody can deny the patient and flexible approach taken by the European Commission over the last number of years in trying to solve them. These difficulties are the predicted consequences following the hard Brexit chosen, and the approach the UK took in implementing the subsequent Brexit deal, even if some elected representatives would like you to conveniently forget their own part in it. There will be many who will seek to blame the messenger for their own political gain. But they can not be kicked down the road any longer”, Kelly warned.
“There are some hard truths to be faced at this point and we will need to see strong and responsible political leadership within the Conservative Party and the DUP. That’s why this moment is a real leadership test for Prime Minister Sunak. The Prime Minister must create a coalition of the logical, who are capable of looking beyond the immediate term, to communicate the fact-based realities of the situation.
“We all want to see this agreement on the Northern Ireland Protocol become a reality in order to provide certainty to the people and businesses there. A resolution of this impasse offers hope for the eventual return of the Northern Ireland Assembly so that the electorate may have proper representation. It is also very important economically, by offering businesses the chance to seize trading opportunities not only in terms of Northern Ireland but also from an all-island perspective”, Kelly underlined.
In the coming days, MEP Kelly looks forward to reviewing the detail of the agreement reached.
“The war in Ukraine has demonstrated that the EU and UK are allies – not adversaries, and that should be the solid foundation for future EU-UK relations”, he added.
