The deadlock over the Northern Ireland protocol could be resolved during high-level talks starting today.
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen is on her way to London to meet British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak in Windsor.
The talks are described as a definitive list of topics that require high-level scrutiny from the leaders themselves.
Although the outcome is still uncertain, he believes that today there is a possibility of a final solution.
The question of how EU law applies to the Northern Ireland Assembly is a major concern for the DUP, while hardline Conservative MPs on Brexit, the ERG, oppose the Court of Justice of the European Union has jurisdiction in Northern Ireland.
The new agreement will eliminate checks only for goods crossing the Irish Sea from Great Britain bound for Northern Ireland.
However, it is not clear if the deputies will vote on it. It is understood that it may become law as secondary legislation.
However, both the Conservatives and the Labor Party have told their MPs that they must attend the House of Commons today.
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What is the Northern Ireland Protocol?
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Britain raised the possibility that the talks would result in a moment of détente after months of negotiations with Brussels over the confirmation of the protocol.
The Tory leader, following his discussions with the EU president, plans to brief his cabinet before announcing details of any agreed deal to voters and MPs.
Sunak told Express.co.uk that if he shook hands with Ms von der Leyen on a deal that “works for everyone”, it would “show that Brexit really does work and it will get the job done”.
He added: “This agreement will work best for businesses, communities and goods on the move.
“It will solve the problems so we can all move forward. This will put Northern Ireland in control of its own destiny. That’s a very positive thing.”
The protocol, signed by former British Prime Minister Boris Johnson in 2020, was a commitment to avoid hard border controls on goods crossing from Northern Ireland into the Republic of Ireland and the EU single market.
But the trade barriers between Northern Ireland and Britain created by the treaty have created unionist tensions, with the federal power-sharing Union collapsing in Stormont last year in protest of its influence.
DUP leader Geoffrey Donaldson has released seven tests that Sunak’s new deal must meet to win the party’s support, including addressing what he calls a “democratic deficit” in Northern Ireland, which is subject to the rules of the EU without having a say in it.
British officials said Sunak would enter into talks with Ms von der Leyen to “restore sovereignty to the people of Northern Ireland”.
Downing Street officials said: “The Prime Minister wants to ensure that any deal resolves practical issues on the ground, ensures trade flows freely across the UK, protects Northern Ireland’s place in our union and returns the sovereignty to the people of Northern Ireland”. » .
He will speak to the EU leader at lunchtime before holding a virtual cabinet session from Windsor, Berkshire, to show them what he has managed to secure.
He is expected to be accompanied by Foreign Secretary James Cleverly, who has met regularly in recent weeks with Commission Vice-President Maro Zivcekovic and Northern Ireland Secretary Chris Heaton-Harris, the most involved.
In case London and Brussels sign off on the revised protocol, Mr. Sunak and Ms. von der Leyen will hold a joint press conference.
Sunak plans to travel to Westminster next to make a statement in the House of Commons.
Von der Leyen was scheduled to fly to Britain on Saturday for talks with Sunak, as well as meet the British monarch at Windsor Castle for tea, but plans were cancelled.
If a deal is announced today, it is unknown if Downing Street plans to reconsider the idea of the German politician meeting King Charles.
Supposedly anxious, Number 10 was revealed to have settled on the protocol on Saturday, calling it the “Windsor Agreement.”
Critics seized on the canceled plans, and the Prime Minister, Sammy Wilson MP, was accused of “dragging the King onto a highly controversial political issue”.
There have been few details from No. 10 about what is currently on the table in terms of a new deal, but Deputy Prime Minister Dominic Raab seemed to hint at what might be in a new deal during interviews yesterday.
Mr Raab noted that reports of check-free passage for goods from Britain to Northern Ireland were correct and that efforts had been made to give Belfast a role in passing new EU laws that would apply to the province .
Leave’s defender said cutting red tape would lead to a “significant reduction” in the role of the European Court of Justice, but refused to rule out it having a say in future legal cases.
The continued enforcement of Brussels laws and the influence of European judges in post-Brexit Northern Ireland has angered eurosceptics in the Conservative Party and the DUP, putting Sunak at risk of a revolt by MPs if he calls for a vote. about an agreement that would allow that as well.
He is likely to win in any division, but Sunak wants to avoid the need for Labor votes as the opposition party backs a revised deal to ensure victory.
The newspaper quoted a British government source as saying the prime minister had obtained “far-reaching” concessions from the European Union.
The newspaper said Northern Ireland might still have to follow future EU rules, but that they would only be imposed “after consultation with London and Belfast”.
Additional PA Reports
