It seems like a never-ending story far from over: Brexit Secretary David Frost and European Commissioner Maros Sefcovic on the issue of Northern Ireland. Previous negotiations failed to bring the two sides together over Northern Ireland’s imports of goods from Britain. Talks continue today.
In the Brexit negotiations, the parties failed to reach an agreement, which is why the talks were postponed. “It comes down to exactly where the EU borders will be,” said Benjamin Levestro, a former British Conservative activist. This should have been an easy topic were it not for Northern Ireland.
Listen also | Northern Ireland back on the agenda
Northern Ireland is the only part of the United Kingdom that is still attached to the European Union. There is no question of border control of goods. This is important for the economy, says Levestro. But this means that a line has to be drawn somewhere and it is now at sea. So there really is a border between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK. This is appalling for Boris Johnson and his comrades. They want to solve that, but that’s a problem. Because then you get a solid border between Ireland and Northern Ireland. Ireland doesn’t want that and half of Northern Ireland doesn’t either.