SAVE ‘OUR PRECIOUS UNION’ FROM BREXIT – DUP

Posted by Jim on November 10, 2018

SAVE ‘OUR PRECIOUS UNION’ FROM BREXIT – DUP

The paradox of the unstoppable force of Brexit and the DUP’s immovable
intransigence may be resolved within days amid reports of a looming
showdown between the British Prime Minister and the DUP.

DUP leader Arlene Foster has rejected the British prime minister’s
proposals for a Brexit withdrawal deal after a leaked letter from the
Tory leader spoke of the North’s “unique circumstances” which she said
“could require specific alignment solutions in some scenarios”.

That comment was in regard to new trade regulations which could apply
differently in the North of Ireland than in Britain, something which is
anathema to unionists.

The future of the Westminster confidence and supply deal agreed between
the two parties 18 months ago is said to under threat once again. That
could leave May requiring support from opposition MPs in order to pass
legislation at Westminster.

Although the letter published by the Times included assurances from Mrs
May that she would not accept any Brexit deal which would “break up the
UK customs territory”, Mrs Foster insisted the correspondence raised
“alarm bells for those who value the integrity of our precious union
[British rule in the north of Ireland]”.

In her letter, Mrs May described the backstop, which experts believe
would likely amount to little more than the checks on agricultural goods
that are already in place, is “an insurance policy that no-one in the UK
or the EU wants or expects to use”.

But the frequent portrayal of potential new regulations as a ‘border
down the Irish Sea’ means the DUP will not back the deal in Westminster.

“No unionist would be able to support that,” Mrs Foster declared. “In
other words we (Northern Ireland) will have a different regulatory
system from the rest of the United Kingdom, and essentially there’s
going to be a border down the Irish Sea.”

The DUP leader said Ms May would also have “a job of work” getting her
cabinet to back her proposals in the context of the “mathematics” of
Westminster. She said the Tory leader now needed to decide whether she
wanted to pursue her proposals without the support of the DUP’s ten MPs.

Sinn Fein Brexit spokesman Mairtin O Muilleoir said the British
government needed to meet its commitments to a backstop and no hard
border “rather than promises to the DUP”.

“The fact is that Theresa May signed up to the Irish backstop in
December and that remains the bottom line in order to prevent a hard
border and safeguard our political and economic stability now and for
the future,” he said.

“It cannot be negotiated downwards. It cannot be watered down or
bargained off. It must be built on to ensure our rights are protected
and translated into legally operable and binding text as part of any
withdrawal agreement.

“The integrity of our peace process is at stake and the onus is on the
Dublin government and the EU 27 to ensure there is no resiling from the
backstop and no return to a hard border on our island.”

SDLP Brexit spokeswoman Claire Hanna said it was unsurprising that the
Tory leader was pushing back on the DUP’s “overzealous demands”.

“The SDLP and others made clear, in advance of the referendum and
incessantly since, that the extreme Brexit that the DUP chase would have
to have consequences,” she said.

Meanwhile, the 26 County government has warned that even if the Tory
cabinet agrees exit plans in the coming days, the rest of the EU must
also back them.

Reports have said that May might be able to win the support of her Tory
cabinet — only for a deal to be rejected by the EU. Fevered reports in
London that senior ministers have been reviewing the text of the
withdrawal agreement are said to have caused bewilderment.

Irish Tanaiste Simon Coveney urged caution. “Repeatedly people seem to
make the same mistake over and over again, assuming that if the British
cabinet agrees something, well, then that’s it then, everything is
agreed.”

The legal detail of an agreement on a backstop – a contingency plan that
would avoid a remilitarised border – remains the main obstacle to
breaking the deadlock.

The 26 County Taoiseach Leo Varadkar appeared to wobble last week in the
face of concerted Tory efforts to unpick the backstop agreement reached
last December. In particular, a demand by Brexit minister Dominic Rabb
for a three month time-limit and his supposed threat to resign appeared
to unnerve the Taoiseach.

An indication by Varadkar that he would consider a review mechanism,
that could allow the backstop to be scrapped, has been largely
retracted. But there were test exchanges in the Dublin parliament when
Mary Lou McDonald reminded the taoiseach of the triumphalist spin which
Varadkar and his party heralded the December deal, and urged him to
remain focused.

There was also an open letter to the Taoiseach, signed by more than
1,000 northern nationalists, including many well known figures from
sports and the arts, calling on him to ensure the rights of that
community are protected as Brexit approaches.

Sinn Fein described it as a “powerful” intervention and showed it was
time for people to make their voices heard.

“Almost twelve months ago the Taoiseach said that no citizen in the
north would ever be left behind again,” said party Deputy Leader
Michelle O’Neill.

“He stated his commitment to no hardening of the border on the island of
Ireland. This is a time of jeopardy with the ramifications from Brexit,
this is about people’s livelihoods and this is people’s rights.

“So I think today’s letter from wider civic nationalism to hold the
Taoiseach to account is very powerful.

“It sends a very strong message that the nationalist community is not
going to stand idly by and allow the British government to disrespect
them when it comes to their rights.”