ONE OF the chief negotiators of the Good Friday Agreement has branded the Brexit deal proposal put forward by Boris Johnson as “a scam”.
Former Labour Party adviser Jonathan Powell told BBC’s Newsnight that the government are “trying to avoid a deal in order to get to no deal as they were always going to do. This is the final confirmation that’s their aim.”
Powell added that the ability to feel Irish or British or both – a key part of the Good Friday agreement he strived so hard to be achieve – “will be destroyed” with the introduction of a customs border.
“The point of this is not how long it takes a lorry to cross the border in Northern Ireland. The issue is identity,” he said.
“It is not a serious proposal and presumably what they’re doing is simply trying to avoid a deal to get to no-deal.”
Former Northern Ireland negotiator Jonathan Powell says the PM’s Brexit offer is a political strategy to enable a no-deal Brexit#Newsnight pic.twitter.com/iN2trgtMXA— BBC Newsnight (@BBCNewsnight) October 1, 2019
According to a report in The Telegraph, Johnson is set to propose a radical “two borders for four years” Brexit plan which will leave Northern Ireland in a special relationship with Europe until 2025.
“The plan will accept the need for both a regulatory border between the UK and Northern Ireland in the Irish Sea for a period of four years – and customs checks between Ulster and the Republic of Ireland,” The Telegraph says.
The plan effectively means that Northern Ireland will remain in large parts of the EU single market until at least 2025 – but will then leave the EU customs union alongside the rest of the UK.
“The point of this is not how long it takes a lorry to cross the border in Northern Ireland. The issue is identity.”
Jonathan Powell, Good Friday Agreement negotiator, says the ability to feel Irish or British or both "will be destroyed” if a customs border is put in#Newsnight pic.twitter.com/fve0s3Q3nr— BBC Newsnight (@BBCNewsnight) October 1, 2019
After four years, the Northern Irish Assembly will be free to choose whether to remain aligned to the EU in the future or return to following British rules.
The proposal is expected to face fierce opposition from EU leaders who will be expected to grant the UK sweeping exemptions from EU customs rules in order to facilitate a Northern Irish customs border.
