Updated: 11.50am
Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Coveney has warned his British counterpart that introducing a Bill to unilaterally amend the Northern Ireland Protocol will breach international law and “deeply damage” relationships.
Mr Coveney said the new Bill “marks a particular low point in the UK’s approach to Brexit”.
Mr Coveney spoke by phone to British foreign secretary Liz Truss following a request by the UK Foreign Office on Monday morning.
The British government has defended the new Bill, saying it is “lawful” and “correct”.
Spoke with @trussliz.
UK Govt now proposing to set aside Int Law, reject a partnership approach, ignore majority in NI & deliberately ratchet up tension with an EU seeking compromise.
We remain open to dialogue to find agreement but his approach adds to instability & is no fix.Advertisement— Simon Coveney (@simoncoveney) June 13, 2022
Following Mr Coveney's comments, British prime minister Boris Johnson insisted the plan was "not a big deal".
It is understood the legislation will give British ministers powers to override elements of the protocol, which was jointly agreed by the EU and UK as part of the Brexit Withdrawal Agreement to avoid a hard border on the island of Ireland.
Mr Johnson said the legislation would introduce "relatively simple" bureaucratic changes and warned it would be a “gross overreaction” if the EU sought to retaliate by triggering a trade war.
Meanwhile, during the call with Mr Coveney, which lasted 12 minutes, Ms Truss said she intends to publish the legislation on Monday.
A spokesman for the Department of Foreign Affairs said: “Mr Coveney said publishing legislation that would breach the UK’s commitments under international law, the Brexit Withdrawal Agreement and Northern Ireland Protocol is deeply damaging to relationships on these islands and between the UK and EU.
“Mr Coveney said it marks a particular low point in the UK’s approach to Brexit, especially as Ms Truss has not engaged with negotiations with the EU in any meaningful way since February.
“Mr Coveney repeated that the protocol is the negotiated solution, ratified by Westminster, to the hard Brexit pursued by the UK government.
“The UK’s unilateral approach is not in the best interest of Northern Ireland and does not have the consent or support of the majority of people or business in Northern Ireland.
“Far from fixing problems, this legislation will create a whole new set of uncertainties and damage relationships.”
The Bill due to come before the British parliament will see the UK government move without the consent of the EU to change the terms of the protocol in a bid to reduce the checks on the movement of goods across the Irish Sea.
This could include allowing ministers to remove all customs processes for goods moving within the UK and may also allow businesses in Northern Ireland to choose whether to follow UK or EU regulations, depending on who they are trading with.
