Downing Street says no changes to Brexit deal as Rishi Sunak urges DUP to end boycott of Stormont power sharing
28 February 2023, 10:51 | Updated: 28 February 2023, 13:56
Downing Street has suggested there is no room for negotiation on the Brexit deal, even if the DUP doesn't fall in line.
Listen to this article
Loading audio...
A spokesperson said that it believed the government had "secured the right deal for all parties in Northern Ireland".
They added: "We stand ready to have further talks with those parties if they have questions about how it works in practice, indeed, we did a great deal of that in the run up to this announcement."
The DUP has not issued a definitive verdict on the deal, which was announced yesterday, but one senior MP said he felt it would not pass the government's tests.
Asked earlier whether it will be implemented even if the DUP rejects it, Mr Sunak said it is “not necessarily about me or any one political party” but “what is best” for the people and businesses of Northern Ireland.
DUP MP Ian Paisley said today his "gut instinct" was that the deal "does not cut the mustard" and is likely to be rejected by the party. He said the framework agreed yesterday by the prime minister and European Commission president failed to meet the seven tests the DUP had set for it.
Speaking in Belfast on Tuesday Mr Sunak urged the DUP to end their boycott of power-sharing in Stormont.
He said: "For all the people who said well, we don't feel like we've got enough sovereignty in this situation, that there's a democratic deficit with this EU – we've corrected it.
"We've put more power in the hands of Stormont, in those very people. But they need to get back in, they need to get put back in so they can use those powers. We've provided the means now, and I hope that with time and space, they will see that that's the right way forward."
Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer has said the deal, though not perfect, is a compromise, adding that he would vote in favour of it.
His party's support means MPs will almost definitely approve the "Windsor Framework" the PM finalised on Monday with the EU in Windsor.
But Mr Sunak will still hope his own party's Brexit hardliners – including the still-influential Boris Johnson – will support it and avoid relying on the opposition to approve it. Sources close to the ex-PM said he is studying the Government's proposals.
"We will not snipe. We will not seek to play political games," Sir Keir said in the Commons.
"And when the Prime Minister puts this deal forward for a vote, Labour will vote for it. The Protocol will never be perfect. It is a compromise.
"But I have always been clear that, if implemented correctly it is an arrangement that could work in the spirit of the Good Friday Agreement. And that now it’s been agreed, we all have an obligation to make it work."
On Tuesday, Nick Ferrari at Breakfast on LBC challenged Foreign Secretary James Cleverly's support of Boris Johnson asking if the former Prime Minister let the country down.
Nick Ferrari challenges Foreign Secretary James Cleverly's support of Boris Johnson
The "Windsor Framework" amends the conditions under which trade in Northern Ireland takes place, establishing green and red lanes based on the risk of the goods that could move into the Republic of Ireland and the single market.
Boris Johnson's influence could be key to whether the changes sail through in an expected vote by MPs or if serious opposition is mounted.
Some EU law will still apply in Northern Ireland - but Mr Sunak said it would be the bare minimum required for frictionless trade between the province and the EU, preventing a hard border in Ireland.
He said the new framework will remove "thousands of pages of EU laws and [make] permanent legally binding changes to the protocol itself" during a statement in Parliament.
Read more: Brexit deal: Northern Ireland Protocol explained
Former Brexit secretary brands the new deal a 'remarkable achievement'
But MPs jeered when he praised his "predecessor" for laying the groundwork that allowed the old protocol to be superseded by his new deal with the EU.
"It achieves something we never achieved before - removing the requirements of the EU customs code for people sending and receiving parcels. Families can rightly send packages to each other without filling in forms," he said.
"Online retailers can serve customers in Northern Ireland as they did before and businesses can ship parcels through the green lane."
He added, to cheers from his party: "We have delivered what the people in Northern Ireland asked for... we have removed the border in the Irish Sea."
Earlier, at the Windsor Guildhall, where he spoke with Ms von der Leyen, he said: "Together we have changed the original protocol and are today announcing the new Windsor framework.
"Today's agreement delivers smooth-flowing trade within the whole United Kingdom, protects Northern Ireland's place in our union and safeguards sovereignty for the people of Northern Ireland."
Controversially, King Charles was due to meet Ms von der Leyen too in the final part of the negotiations - something that Brexiteers feared represented a monarch inappropriately becoming entangled in a political issue.
The Northern Ireland protocol is an arrangement that avoids creating a hard border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, which would go against agreements designed to keep the peace between communities in the north.
Some checks on goods take place to reduce the risk of products that don't comply with EU rules entering the single market from Britain, but unionists critics say it effectively moves the border from Ireland to the Irish Sea.
This Irish caller says years of living in Britain made him feel 'less British'
This new deal would establish red and green lanes depending on whether products are destined for the Republic – and therefore the single market - or just Northern Ireland. There would be reduced checks for the latter.
Politicians at Stormont would be able to have a say in which EU rules they continue to follow via an "emergency brake" mechanism.
"We've amended the legal text of the of the protocol to ensure we can make critical VAT and excise changes for the whole of the UK, for example alcohol duty, meaning our reforms to cut the cost of a pint in a pub will now apply in Northern Ireland," Mr Sunak added.
Read more: Charles Bronson seen from inside prison for first time in decades ahead of parole hearing
Read more: 'Better than 50-50 chance energy bills won't rise in April', Martin Lewis says
The Irish Times said the DUP is expected to approve the plans. Some pro-Brexit Tories had threatened to oppose any deal if the unionist party did not agree to it, and the party said it will examine the proposals in detail.
And Northern Ireland secretary Steve Baker – the self styled "Brexit hard-man" – backed the deal despite having reportedly been put on resignation watch.
"I can only say this: that the Prime Minister is on the cusp of securing a really fantastic result for everyone involved," he said.
There are also question marks over what Boris Johnson will make of it. The former PM looks to be making a comeback by cranking up the pressure under his ex-chancellor and could try to lead any resistance to a plan.
Tom in Dublin says NI Protocol is DUP’s 'Trojan horse'
MPs in the House of Commons had mixed reactions on Monday night.
Conservative former minister and staunch Brexit supporter David Davis gave his backing to the deal, describing it as "a spectacular negotiating success".
Paying tribute to the Stormont brake in particular, he added: "I am unaware of any mechanism in any international agreement like the Stormont brake. It seems to me a brilliant piece of negotiating insight and imagination.
But Conservative former minister Mark Francois, chairman of the European Research Group (ERG) made up of Eurosceptic Tory MPs, said he wanted assurances that he "won't find any nasty surprises" when looking at the deal in more detail.
Read more: Man, 21, dies as girl, 16, fights for her life after multi-vehicle crash in Dunbartonshire
He said: "As a former chancellor, he knows well that on budget day the Government puts a good gloss on whatever they're putting to the public but then you have to read through the red book to just check on the fine detail.
"He's worked very hard on this so can he assure me and the whole House that when we go through the red book, or in this instance the detailed legal text, we won't find any nasty surprises which will materially undermine the position of Northern Ireland in the United Kingdom?"
Mr Sunak did not comment on when MPs would have a vote on the agreement when asked in the Commons.
Conservative MP Simon Hoare, chairman of the Northern Ireland Affairs Committee, said: "Whilst respecting entirely and agreeing... that parties, particularly those in Northern Ireland, need the time and space to study the detail and to work out all of the implications for those in Northern Ireland, Northern Irish business wants and the good people of Northern Ireland most certainly deserve quick certainty.
"So if there are to be votes in this place on any element of the Windsor Framework as announced today, can my right honourable friend commit to ensuring that those votes take place speedily in order to ensure that certainty and peace of mind?"
Mr Sunak said: "Parliament will of course have its say and there will be a vote. But we will need to do that at the appropriate time as we give people the time and space to consider the detail."
