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There has been “a lot of spinning” by the UK in the past week around the Northern Ireland protocol, which has left the European Union confused, EU commissioner Mairead McGuinness has said.
Ms McGuinness acknowledged that relations between the UK and the EU were strained, but said the EU had the political will to resolve the outstanding issue of the protocol. “We have to do it together,” she said.
She said any threat of unilateral action by the UK would not do anything to unlock the problems for the people of Northern Ireland who do not want further destabilisation.
Speaking on RTÉ’s Morning Ireland Ms McGuinness said, there will not be a knee-jerk reaction from the EU, which has “tried to remain very calm”.
“We put forward a lot of proposals, but there hasn’t been a lot of engagement,” she said. “The truth is Northern Ireland was not considered during the [Brexit] referendum in 2016.”
The idea that the UK could “tear up” what was on the table and “start from scratch” was a delaying tactic, Ms McGuinness said, adding that the issue could be solved with political will, but unilateral action would make the situation worse.
Her comments followed UK prime minister Boris Johnson’s visit to Northern Ireland on Monday. Mr Johnson signalled that his government would begin the process of taking unilateral action to remove parts of the Northern Ireland protocol – while insisting the post-Brexit deal would not be scrapped but “fixed”.
Mr Johnson travelled to the North to meet the five main political parties in a bid to restore Stormont power-sharing, which effectively collapsed last Friday after the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) blocked the election of a Speaker as part of its continuing protest over the protocol.
Following talks in Hillsborough Castle, Mr Johnson said he tried to persuade the DUP “in particular” to return to governing.
“We would love this to be done in a consensual way with our friends and partners, ironing out the problems, stopping some of these barriers east-west,” he said. “But to get that done, to have the insurance we need, we need to proceed with a legislative solution at the same time.”
Trade wars
When asked about the threat of trade wars as suggested by DUP leader Jeffrey Donaldson on Monday, Ms McGuinness said the EU was not going to start talking about trade wars. “Every time we come forward with good proposals they are pocketed and not discussed. Retaliation and threats are not words we use.”
However, the idea that the EU would do nothing was not going to help the people of Northern Ireland, she said. “We have to reset relations.”
The EU did not have a list of what it would do when “what if” situations arose, she said. There would have to be a strong reaction if unilateral action was threatened.
There was a solution, but it was not for only one side to say “take it or leave it”, she said, adding that the EU was alert to the concerns of the unionist community, but that did not mean it was going to “go entirely to their side”.
“We have to get balance here. We’re here to get a balanced solution.”
Meanwhile, Sinn Féin vice-president Michelle O’Neill accused Mr Johnson on Monday of “pandering” to the DUP which was in effect blocking democracy and preventing an Executive from being formed in Northern Ireland.
Ms O’Neill said Mr Johnson and Northern Ireland secretary Brandon Lewis intend to over-ride an international agreement which would cause damage to the economic institutions of Northern Ireland.
Both sides needed to sit down and agree solutions, she said, and all energy should go into finding a way forward.
Britain’s foreign secretary Liz Truss is expected to make a statement on Tuesday on the UK government’s plans to unilaterally over-ride parts of the protocol, the part of the Brexit withdrawal agreement which avoided a hard border on the island of Ireland by placing a customs and regulatory border in the Irish Sea.