The Northern Ireland protocol is now unsustainable and unworkable, Britain says, despite signing up to it just seven months ago. Ms von der Leyen made clear on Thursday that Brussels would "be creative and flexible" over the Northern Ireland protocol "but we will not renegotiate". British sources have made clear businesses are now facing an unnecessarily large level of bureaucracy on goods travelling between Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Ms von der Leyen said Mr Johnson "called to present" the proposals to solve the post-Brexit trade issues between Northern Ireland and Great Britain on Thursday morning. "We must jointly ensure stability and predictability in Northern Ireland."

Source: Irish Examiner July 22, 2021 19:30 UTC