After months of arduous negotiations between the EU and the UK, an agreement has been reached on the highly controversial Northern Ireland Protocol. The agreement allows goods to cross the border with Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland without undergoing any checks.

European Commission President, Ursula von der Leyen, was in London to seal the new deal, which is called the Windsor Framework.

According to her, it will allow a new beginning in Brussels-London relations. Under current rules, goods are inspected at Northern Ireland ports on arrival from the United Kingdom, after which they can be transported to the Republic of Ireland.

The new proposals, however, will create two separate lanes. Goods destined for Northern Ireland only will travel through a green lane, which means they will not undergo any checks. Goods destined for Ireland and the EU will pass through a red lane where checks will be carried out.

UK Prime Minister, Rishi Sunak, also announced a new mechanism to allow the Northern Irish Assembly to veto any changes to EU goods rules, called the “Stormont brake”:

This will establish a clear process through which the democratically elected assembly (Stormond) can make an emergency brake for changes to EU rules on goods that will have a significant and lasting impact on everyday life. If the brake is withdrawn, the UK government will have a veto.

However, the European Court of Justice will still have a role as the final arbiter of any disputes between the EU and the UK.

The question now is whether this will satisfy hard-liners in the British Conservative Party and Northern Ireland’s Democratic Unionist Party, given that the removal of the Court’s jurisdiction is one of their main demands.

The agreement will be submitted to the British Parliament.

Source: Euronews

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