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Government publishes Brexit proposals Brexit: New UK plan for Northern Ireland to stay in single market
(about 1 hour later)
The government has published its Brexit proposals to the EU, including plans to replace the Irish backstop. The government has delivered its new Brexit proposals to the EU, including plans to replace the Irish backstop.
The plan would see Northern Ireland essentially stay in the European single market for goods, but leave the customs union. The plan, outlined in a seven-page document, would see Northern Ireland stay in the European single market for goods, but leave the customs union - resulting in new customs checks.
The Northern Ireland Assembly would have to approve the arrangements first and be able to vote every four years on whether to keep them. The Northern Ireland Assembly would get to approve the arrangements first and vote every four years on keeping them.
The European Commission says it will "examine [the proposals] objectively".The European Commission says it will "examine [the proposals] objectively".
Speaking at the Conservative Party conference, Mr Johnson said the only alternative to his plan was no-deal.
He has written to the European Commission's president, Jean-Claude Juncker, alongside the proposals, saying they "respect the decision taken by the people of the UK to leave the EU, while dealing pragmatically with that decision's consequences in Northern Ireland and in Ireland".
Government sources said they believed they could enter an intense 10-day period of negotiations almost immediately with the bloc, with the aim of coming to a final agreement at the EU council in the middle of the month.
Speaking before he saw the plan, Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar told the Irish Parliament: "What we are hearing is not encouraging and would not be the basis for agreement."
The UK is set to leave the EU on 31 October and the government has insisted it will not negotiate a further delay beyond the Halloween deadline.The UK is set to leave the EU on 31 October and the government has insisted it will not negotiate a further delay beyond the Halloween deadline.
However, under the terms of a law passed by Parliament last month, the PM faces having to request another extension unless MPs back the terms of withdrawal by 19 October - two days after a summit of European leaders. Speaking at the Conservative Party conference earlier on Wednesday, Boris Johnson said the only alternative to his Brexit plan was no-deal.
Northern Ireland's Democratic Unionist Party - long term critics of the backstop and partners of the Tory Party in Parliament - backed the proposals. In a letter to European Commission's president, Jean-Claude Juncker, the prime minister said the new proposals "respect the decision taken by the people of the UK to leave the EU, while dealing pragmatically with that decision's consequences in Northern Ireland and in Ireland".
In a statement, the DUP said the plan "demonstrates commitment to working with our neighbours" in Ireland, and said the proposals respected "the integrity of Northern Ireland's economic and constitutional position within the United Kingdom". Government sources said they believed they could enter an intense 10-day period of negotiations with the EU almost immediately, with the aim of coming to a final agreement at an EU summit on 17 October.
John Campbell, the BBC's Northern Ireland business editor, said the UK's acknowledgement there would be new customs checks for cross-border trade would make it very hard for the Irish government to accept the package.
The EU will analyse these proposals and probably keep the door open to further talks with UK so there's no risk of being blamed for a no-deal Brexit.
They will likely welcome the massive increase in regulatory alignment proposed for Northern Ireland - which a few days ago was only going to cover food and agriculture and now covers virtually all goods.
The UK will also allow the European Court of Justice to administer EU law in Northern Ireland.
The customs arrangement is based on a lot of trust and a lot of checks, including at "dedicated premises" which sound a bit like the customs infrastructure the EU wants to avoid.
But there will be lots of information about goods travelling into Northern Ireland from the rest of the UK, which the government could share with the EU.
There's also a big problem with the exit mechanism for the Northern Irish Assembly: is this handing the DUP a veto, and what happens if they decide to end the backstop arrangements?
Northern Ireland's Democratic Unionist Party - long-term critics of the backstop and partners of the Conservative Party in Parliament - gave a cautious welcome to the proposals.
In a statement, the DUP said the plan "demonstrates commitment to working with our neighbours" in Ireland and respected "the integrity of Northern Ireland's economic and constitutional position within the United Kingdom".
But Sinn Fein said the plans were a "non-starter" and accused their former power-sharing partners of "working against the interests of the people" of Northern Ireland.
And Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn said the deal was "not acceptable" and "worse" than Theresa May's agreement, as it "undermined" the Good Friday Agreement that secured peace in Northern Ireland.
What is in the proposals?What is in the proposals?
The PM's plan centres around replacing the backstop - the policy negotiated between Theresa May and EU to try and prevent hard borders returning to the island of Ireland. The prime minister has set out details of his plan to replace the Irish border "backstop" in the current Brexit agreement.
Mr Johnson has called it "anti-democratic", claiming it offers no means for the UK to unilaterally exit and no say for the people of Northern Ireland over the rules that would apply there. The backstop is the controversial "insurance policy" that is meant to keep a free-flowing border on the island of Ireland but which critics - including the PM - fear could trap the UK in EU trading rules indefinitely.
His offer is for an "all-island regulatory zone", which would mean Northern Ireland would have to follow EU rules for goods. Under Mr Johnson's proposals, which he calls a "broad landing zone" for a new deal with the EU:
There would be additional checks on goods moving from Great Britain to Northern Ireland, but the UK would not apply further checks on goods entering Northern Ireland from Ireland.
Checks relating to the single market are about product standards, to ensure goods comply with EU regulations.
However, Northern Ireland would leave the EU customs union with the rest of the UK, so there would have to be new customs checks between North and South.
Those checks would look at customs documents and the payment of tariffs, which allow goods to cross the border in the first place.
The government proposals suggest the vast majority of checks could be carried out electronically - but thinks a small number of physical checks would have to take place, either at business premises or at points on the supply chain.
The Stormont Assembly - Northern Ireland's parliament - would have to agree these proposals through a vote and would be given a vote every four years on whether to preserve them.
The government is also promising a "New Deal for Northern Ireland", with financial commitments to help manage the changes.The government is also promising a "New Deal for Northern Ireland", with financial commitments to help manage the changes.
In his letter to the European President Mr Juncker, the PM said he hoped his offer could "provide the basis for rapid negotiations towards a solution". What's the reaction been?
Later, Mr Johnson will speak to Mr Juncker on the phone and the two sides' negotiating teams will also meet. Later, Mr Johnson will speak to Mr Juncker on the phone and the two sides' negotiating teams will also meet, while the UK PM will also speak to his Irish counterpart.
Ahead of reading the plan, Mr Varadker said, despite wanting a deal, he would not agree to one "at any cost" and Ireland was "ready for no-deal if that's what the British decide to do". German Chancellor Angela Merkel said the EU would study the proposals carefully and she "trusted" the bloc's Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier to maintain European unity.
And before the proposals were submitted, a European Commission spokeswoman said they would examine the them objectively, adding: "We will listen carefully to the UK." But opponents of Brexit in Parliament indicated they would not support the proposals, unless they were accompanied by the promise of another referendum.
But the spokeswoman also reminded the UK of its "well-known criteria", saying: "In order for there to be a deal, we must have a legally operational solution that meets all the objectives of the backstop. The Lib Dems said the proposals would deal a "hammer blow" to the Northern Irish economy while the SNP said it gave the DUP a veto over the proposed alternative to the backstop.
"[That means] preventing a hard border, preserving North-South cooperation and the all-island economy, and protecting the EU's Single Market and Ireland's place in it." "This is not a way forward," the SNP's Ian Blackford told the BBC. "It is window dressing from the government."