Theresa May, the former UK Prime Minister, has led opposition to Boris Johnson’s plan to break the Northern Ireland element of his Brexit deal, condemning it as illegal and warning that it would harm the position of the United Kingdom in the world.
Speaking to the House of Commons on Monday, May underestimated Johnson’s claim that he needed to pass legislation to repeal parts of the Northern Ireland protocol, the part of his Brexit deal with the EU that covers trade with the region.
May said he could not support the legislation, which is expected to survive its initial passage through the Commons before reaching a severe blockade in the House of Lords.
“In my view, this bill is not legal under international law, it will not achieve its goals and it diminishes the UK’s position in the eyes of the world,” May told lawmakers.
Meanwhile, Simon Hoare, Conservative chairman of the Northern Ireland Committee, said the bill appeared to be a “muscle bend for a future leadership bid” by Foreign Secretary Liz Truss. Andrew Mitchell, a former Conservative leader, said the bill “erases our international reputation.”
Truss, who introduced the Northern Ireland Protocol Bill for second reading to the Commons, insisted the legislation was “both legal and necessary” to address economic and political tensions in the region.
Secretary of State Liz Truss © Parliamentlive.tv
He said the EU was unwilling to change the protocol, agreed by Johnson in 2020, even though its operation was causing tension in the pro-UK unionist community in Northern Ireland.
The protocol creates a border in the Irish Sea for goods moving from the UK to Northern Ireland, which remains the EU’s single market for goods. It also eliminates the need for border controls at the Irish land border.
May, who tried and failed to sell his own Brexit deal to parliament, warned at the time that the creation of a trade border within the UK would lead to such tensions. Johnson later praised his deal with the EU as a triumph.
Ministers agreed this month that the bill should not be given on second reading until the Democratic Unionist Party of Northern Ireland, the largest unionist party, has agreed to end its boycott of the the region at Stormont.
But Truss admitted he had failed to reach an agreement and only said his expectation was that “the passage of the bill” would mean the reinstatement of the power-sharing body in Stormont.
The DUP said it wants to see concrete actions to remove key elements of the protocol before yielding to any demand from the UK government to restart the region’s executive.
DUP leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson © Parliamentlive.tv
On Monday, before lawmakers voted on the legislation, DUP leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson hinted that the party could move before the bill was finally enacted, but remained uncommitted, saying only that “it would consider what steps we can take “.
He added: “I have made it clear that we will be guided by conditions, not by the timetable, and that we want to see real progress with this bill, and that is our message today in the House of Commons.”
The EU has warned the UK not to break the protocol unilaterally, but negotiations to improve its operation have stalled.
May dryly pointed out that this could be because EU leaders did not expect Johnson to be at number 10 for much longer or even if he survived as prime minister, he doubted whether he would abide by any future agreement.
Recommended
Brussels has responded to the bill by restarting legal proceedings against the UK and threatening to use “all measures at its disposal”, including a possible trade war, if London acted to unclog the protocol.
Simon Coveney, the Irish Foreign Minister, said he was “very disappointed” by the British decision to push through the legislation.
Earlier Monday, Truss hosted UK business leaders for a roundtable discussion to discuss how the issues raised by the protocol could be resolved.
One person present said Truss had told the meeting that the inflexibility of the EU had left the government no choice but to act unilaterally. They added that some retailers and small businesses in the UK had raised concerns that the legislation could lead to a trade war with the EU during the cost of living crisis.