EU Warns Next PM Unilateral Action on Brexit Deal Is of ‘Great Concern’

THE GUARDIAN: European Commission vice-president, Maroš Šefčovič, says it is ‘legally and politically inconceivable’

EU Commission vice-president, Maroš Šefčovič. Photograph: Martin Divíšek/EPA
The EU has warned the incoming British prime minister, likely to be Liz Truss, that any unilateral action to scrap part of the Brexit deal is legally and politically of “great concern” across the continent.

The warning by the European Commission vice-president, Maroš Šefčovič, comes just days before the new prime minister is expected to confirm they will press ahead with new laws to dismantle the arrangements for Northern Ireland.

Truss and Sunak have both committed to carrying through with the Northern Ireland protocol bill in their leadership campaigns, despite the threat of a retaliatory trade war with the EU.

“The unilateral action is naturally of great concern,” Šefčovič told an audience that included invited ministers from the British and Irish governments. » | Lisa O'Carroll, Brexit correspondent | Friday, September 2, 2022

Michael Lambert: Why Time Is Running Out for Boris Johnson Who Says He Will Not Change

Jun 25, 2022 • Time is running out for Boris Johnson. He says he will not change despite the mass of problems which he faces. The economy is doing badly post-Brexit, a major strike of railwaymen is taking place with many more strikes planned by other sectors.

He has threatened a trade war with the EU by wanting to introduce legislation to override the Northern Ireland Protocol. Food supplies are threatened later this year, and there are now said to be more food banks in the UK than branches of MacDonalds.

Many MP's are worried that Johnson is no longer an election winner but an election loser and it is likely that the 1922 committee will arrange another Vote of No Confidence in the Prime Minister very soon.

The OECD, the OBR, the LSE and others all predict a sharp decline in the British economy as a direct result of Brexit.

The Guardian View on Overriding the Brexit Treaty: A National Disgrace

THE GUARDIAN – EDITORIAL: Boris Johnson’s plans to shred the Northern Ireland protocol have no basis in law, economics or diplomacy

There is no good reason for the UK to sabotage relations with its European neighbours, but doing it to score ideological points with a small faction of the prime minister’s supporters is exceptionally poor judgment. Yet that is what Boris Johnson intends to do with legislation, now said to be due for publication next week, to override the Northern Ireland protocol of the Brexit deal he signed in 2019.

The ostensible trigger is the collapse of power-sharing at Stormont, caused by the Democratic Unionist party’s refusal to form an administration with Sinn Féin. The DUP objects to the basis of the protocol – the requirement for customs checks on goods crossing the Irish Sea – and wants it rewritten. The EU offers modifications in the way that the treaty is implemented, saying checks are necessary to prevent Northern Ireland becoming an unregulated backdoor into the single market. » | Editorial | Thursday, June 9, 2022

Brexit: PM to unveil plans to scrap parts of NI Protocol agreed with EU: Boris Johnson will later publish plans to scrap parts of the post-Brexit deal he struck with the EU in 2020. »

UK Moves to Scrap Northern Ireland Protocol Raises EU Ire

May 17, 2022 • British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss is expected to present a new law to parliament that would unilaterally change the Northern Ireland protocol, a key element of the Brexit deal that saw the UK leave the European Union. Donnacha O Beachain from Dublin City University has more on the Northern Ireland protocol.

EU Raises Spectre of Trade War If UK Rewrites Northern Ireland Protocol

THE GUARDIAN: Brussels vows to respond with ‘all measures at its disposal’ as Liz Truss sets out plan to make changes

Liz Truss and the European Commission vice-president Maroš Šefčovič in February. The foreign secretary has asked to be given a rewritten negotiating mandate. Photograph: Thierry Monasse/Getty Images
The European Commission has raised the spectre of an economically damaging trade war with the UK, pledging to respond with “all measures at its disposal” if Liz Truss presses ahead with a plan to rewrite the Northern Ireland protocol.

The foreign secretary set out plans on Tuesday to table a bill that would make key changes to the protocol, including waiving all checks on goods flowing from Great Britain to Northern Ireland where they are not destined for the Republic of Ireland. » | Heather Stewart, Jennifer Rankin and Lisa O'Carroll | Tuesday, May 17, 2022

Reality check: the Northern Ireland protocol isn’t the problem, Brexit is: The Tories are addicted to conflict with the EU, for fear of taking responsibility for the consequences of liberation »

UK, EU Risk Trade War as Brexit Tensions Rise

May 16, 2022 • A Possible decision by the UK government to override parts of its Brexit deal's conditions for Northern Ireland is sparking concerns of a trade war with the European Union. University of Cambridge Professor of EU Law Catherine Barnard examines how the Northern Ireland protocol plays into the Brexit deal and trade on "Bloomberg Markets."

Brexit: EU Warns of 'Serious Consequences' If UK Triggers Article 16

Nov 5, 2021 • Brussels could impose tariffs on UK imports or even tear up the EU-UK Brexit trade deal altogether.

Verwandt

EU to tell Frost Brexit talks will fail unless he ditches ECJ demand: Concerns grow that Boris Johnson has already decided to trigger article 16 of Northern Ireland protocol »

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