But the EU were wary that items passing through the ‘green channel’ could end up in Northern Ireland factories that were manufacturing goods for sale in the EU. The PPA’s remit covers everything from EU-UK trade and cooperation agreements to the UK Internal Market Act and, notably, the Northern Ireland Protocol. With Northern Ireland still without a sitting assembly since its elections last May and with a possible visit from President Joe Biden likely in the near future, some urgency has entered into the discussions. There is now a widespread feeling that the people of Northern Ireland are hostages of an internal Tory Party struggle and have lost democratic control of their own destiny. That is why Rishi Sunak, James Cleverly and Chris Heaton-Harris are pulling out all the stops to cement a deal with Brussels over Northern Ireland.

Source: The Herald January 18, 2023 07:12 UTC