Distributed to Congress by Irish National Caucus
DUP veto must be withdrawn
Irish News Editorial. Belfast. Monday, October 7, 2019
Taoiseach Leo Varadkar was stating the obvious at the weekend when he said
that the UK has so far failed to come up with proposals which are capable
of breaking the Brexit deadlock and allowing deeper negotiations to
follow.
Mr Varadkar, speaking at a Fine Gael event in Dublin, insisted there was
still time for progress to be made, but, with a crucial EU summit to take
place on October 17 and 18, it is clear that the British government
has only days to produce a substantially overhauled blueprint.
Boris Johnson needs to start by accepting that his bizarre suggestion
about a revived Stormont Assembly supervising post-Brexit arrangements on
the border in Ireland should be withdrawn.
There is of course not the slightest indication that our devolved
structures are capable of being restored in the foreseeable future,
particularly with the forthcoming report of the public inquiry into
the Renewable Heat Incentive scandal expected to place a further intense
spotlight on the credibility of senior DUP figures.
However, even if business at Parliament Buildings can somehow be
eventually resumed, Mr. Johnson needs to realize that a decisive majority
of MLAs entirely reject any implication that the DUP will be allowed
to veto key developments.
The British prime minister has suggested that Northern Ireland could
continue to apply EU legislation relating to agricultural and other
products, but only if Assembly members provided their consent every
four years.
This would require a cross-community Stormont vote which could be
potentially blocked by the DUP, even though it holds just 28 of the 90
seats in the chamber.
Mr. Johnson must surely realize that a measure with serious consequences
for Northern Ireland which is opposed not only by two thirds of Assembly
members but also the main business and farming organizations is
entirely unsustainable.
Although his Brexit secretary Stephen Barclay hinted yesterday that
changes to the mechanism were possible, it is quite possible Mr. Johnson
is still playing political games and is fully prepared to face a
catastrophic no deal exit from the EU as long he remains in power.
If Mr. Johnson instead really wants to protect the 1998 Good Friday
Agreement, it is essential that he respects the views of the overwhelming
majority of elected representatives in both Stormont and indeed the
Dail.
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