Agreement on protocol before Christmas is ‘unrealistic’, Simon Coveney says
The Irish Foreign Affairs Minister said some issues could be resolved soon, such as the flow of medicines into Northern Ireland.
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.The Irish Foreign Affairs Minister has said reaching an agreement on the Northern Ireland Protocol before Christmas is “unrealistic”.
Simon Coveney was speaking in London ahead of meetings with Brexit minister Lord Frost and Northern Ireland Secretary Brandon Lewis.
He suggested agreement could be found in some areas, such as the flow of medicines into Northern Ireland from Great Britain.
“I don’t think there’ll be a full deal on all issues related to the protocol before Christmas. I think that would be unrealistic at this stage,” he told RTE News.
It’s important to encourage both sides to try to find landing zones and compromise positions on important issues
“But I think some things can be agreed this side of Christmas, hopefully, as I say, giving certainty to people in Northern Ireland in terms of the supply of medicines from Great Britain into Northern Ireland.”
Talks aimed at resolving the impasse over the protocol are continuing.
The post-Brexit trading arrangements have help to avoid a hard border on the island of Ireland, but have created regulatory barriers in the Irish Sea between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK.
Mr Coveney called on the EU and the UK to step up efforts to find a solution.
He said: “While that progress is possible, it’s important to encourage both sides to try to find landing zones and compromise positions on important issues, in particular on the guarantee of supply of medicines into Northern Ireland from Great Britain, which is something that I know both teams have been trying to resolve in recent weeks, and hopefully we can make progress on soon.
“Certainly the EU is very anxious to move that issue on, and they believe that they have a solution that hopefully can work for the British side as well.”
Subscribe to Independent Premium to bookmark this article
Want to bookmark your favourite articles and stories to read or reference later? Start your Independent Premium subscription today.