Stay up to date with notifications from The Independent

Notifications can be managed in browser preferences.

Irish leader: Brexit talks over N Ireland close to a deal

Ireland's prime minister says the U.K. and the European Union are “inching” closer to agreeing on a deal to resolve a thorny post-Brexit dispute in Northern Ireland

Via AP news wire
Saturday 25 February 2023 18:21 GMT

Your support helps us to tell the story

From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.

At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.

The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.

Your support makes all the difference.

Ireland's prime minister said Saturday that the U.K. and the European Union are “inching” closer to agreeing on a deal to resolve a thorny post-Brexit dispute in Northern Ireland.

Leo Varadkar told reporters that he believed an agreement may be possible within days. His comments came amid intense speculation that a breakthrough on months-long wrangling over the trading arrangements, known as the Northern Ireland Protocol, is imminent.

“Certainly the deal isn’t done yet,” Varadkar told broadcaster RTE. ”But I do think we are inching towards conclusion."

“I would just encourage everyone to go the extra mile to come to an agreement because the benefits are huge," he added.

The U.K. and the EU have been at loggerheads over Northern Ireland — the only part of the U.K. that shares a border with an EU member, the Republic of Ireland — since the U.K.'s exit from the trade bloc became final in 2020.

When the U.K. left the bloc, the two sides agreed to keep the Irish border free of customs posts and other checks because an open border is a key pillar of Northern Ireland’s peace process.

Under the agreement, there are checks on some goods entering Northern Ireland from the rest of the U.K. That angered British unionist politicians, who insist that the new trade border undermines Northern Ireland's place in the United Kingdom.

Northern Ireland's power-sharing government has been nonfunctional since the Democratic Unionist Party walked out a year ago in protest. The party has insisted that the protocol must be scrapped or substantially changed.

___

Follow AP’s coverage of Brexit at https://apnews.com/hub/brexit and of British politics at https://apnews.com/hub/british-politics

Thank you for registering

Please refresh the page or navigate to another page on the site to be automatically logged inPlease refresh your browser to be logged in