The UK´s Command Paper on the Northern Ireland Protocol
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The UK´s Command Paper on the Northern Ireland Protocol

David McAllister MEP

The UK´s Command Paper on the Northern Ireland Protocol

(26 July 2021)

The UK Command Paper on the Northern Ireland Protocol covers requests to reconsider the way the Protocol is to be implemented or calls for a renegotiation of a large number of its provisions.

The Protocol is the agreed solution between the UK and the EU to address the challenges caused by Brexit for the island of Ireland – to safeguard the Good Friday (Belfast) Agreement, avoid a hard border on the island of Ireland and protect the integrity of the Single Market.

The requests for renegotiation include aspects that go to the heart of the balanced solution found by the two sides in the Protocol and the commitments that the UK has previously made, including relating to rules on customs, goods, movement of live animals, medicines and subsidy control, as well as the entire governance system.

The EU will not renegotiate the Protocol but stands ready to engage with the UK on the command paper over the summer, to consider UK proposals which respect the principles underpinning the Protocol and to continue to seek creative solutions to practical problems experienced by communities in Northern Ireland, within the framework of the Protocol.

The EU’s continued commitment to finding practical solutions was demonstrated by the Commission’s package of 30 June.  This addressed continued availability of chilled meat in Northern Irish supermarkets, continued supply of medicines to Northern Ireland and solutions to movement of livestock.

Over the past few months, no fewer than 70 meetings with the UK have taken place to find solutions to implementation issues. In each of those meetings, the EU has explored all sorts of possibilities while asking the UK to provide further evidence of the actual scope of the problems, and essential details on how the solutions they propose could work in practice. That information has not yet been provided by the UK and is still necessary.

We need to provide stability and predictability to businesses and citizens in Northern Ireland. This is an important focus for the EU, to allow businesses and citizens in Northern Ireland to benefit from the opportunities provided by the Protocol. EU unity, that has served us so well in the previous negotiations, is a fundamental part of our next steps.