Labor finally attacked the EU last night for its stubborn stance in the Brexit talks, when Brussels was urged to show “flexibility” in a customs queue. Shadow Foreign Secretary David Lammy admits a deal can only be struck on the Northern Ireland Protocol if the bloc abandons its tough approach to discussions.
Government ministers have become increasingly frustrated with the EU’s stance over the past year, warning that changes to the protocol must be made to protect the UK’s integrity.
Prime Minister Liz Truss has threatened to take unilateral action to suspend aspects of the international agreement in an effort to resolve the problems caused by the deal.
And yesterday, Mr Lammy finally seemed to agree that the EU had to let go of its intransigence.
Speaking at the annual Labor conference in Liverpool, he told a packed house of Labor members: “Obviously it requires flexibility on the European side.”
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The British government last year requested changes to the protocol amid concerns it would have a detrimental effect on Northern Ireland’s economy.
The DUP has refused to form a power-sharing board with Sinn Fein until the problems caused by the deal are resolved, meaning there is no functioning decentralized government in the province.
Britain asked the EU to reopen negotiations on the protocol to make the necessary changes for a new deal.
However, talks between the UK and the EU have broken down after months of negotiations, partly as a result of Brussels’ refusal to reconsider the international agreement.
Mr Lammy demanded that both Brussels and the UK join forces to find a solution to the problems of the protocol.
“We sincerely believe that you should roll up your sleeves and negotiate and we can negotiate on a basis of trust with our European partners,” he said.
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“I’m not convinced that supermarket chains aren’t something we can’t work on, that VAT isn’t something we can’t work on.”
He added: “There is clearly friction with trade and that will affect jobs, that will affect our economy.
“We’ve said, we’re very clear, we want to work as best we can to solve a lot of those problems.”
As part of the 2019 Brexit Withdrawal Agreement, customs controls are required on anyone crossing the Irish Sea into the province.
It means carriers have to deal with extensive red tape to make shipments from one part of the UK to another.
The controls have led to a rise in food prices in Northern Ireland and concerns that many businesses will simply refuse to sell products to the area.
However, Mr Lammy also took a swipe at Ms Truss for a break in diplomatic relations with the EU, accusing ministers of walking away from the Brexit deal they had agreed.
He said: “It’s important to say that this is their deal that they made, this was the deal they wanted, this was the deal that many of us in this room warned them about.”