Truss to restart talks with EU over Northern Ireland Protocol today
Liz Truss will restart talks with the EU over the Northern Ireland Protocol today, with the foreign secretary claiming there is a “deal to be done”.
Truss, who will meet with European Commission Vice President Maros Sefcovic at Chevening, said the EU has a “clear responsibility to help fix the myriad problems caused by the protocol”.
It comes after Truss last week reiterated that she was prepared to trigger Article 16 and suspend the protocol if a deal could not be struck.
The UK threatened to suspend the protocol for much of last year in the face of economic and political friction caused by stringent EU border checks on goods going from Great Britain to Northern Ireland.
London and Brussels have both produced proposals to reduce checks, however progress has stalled over the past few months.
“I will be putting forward practical, reasonable solutions starting from these fundamental principles, with a view to agreeing a plan for intensive negotiations,” Truss said.
“The EU has a clear responsibility to help fix the myriad problems caused by the Protocol and protects the Belfast (Good Friday) Agreement. As fellow believers in liberty and democracy, we should be capable of reaching an agreement that delivers for Northern Ireland and allows us to unleash the full potential of our relationship.”
The EU’s ambassador to the UK Joao Vale de Almeida said Truss’ renewed threats last week were “unhelpful” and that she should not “keep agitating the issue”.