A n MP's excuse for the unsatisfactory (in their view) Northern Ireland Protocol

Oh dear. I chose the wrong way to start this thread ☹

I was really hoping for some views on what expectations we have of our legislators...

OTH Perhaps most people don't have any views on how our laws are made in Parliament... by, it seems, a bunch of amateurs...

Ireland has to do what the majority wants, we will have to live with their decision. Dare say whatever, we will manage.

The full article

www.liverpool.ac.uk/law/news/articles/professor-michael-dougan-a-brief-guide-to-brexit-and-the-irish-border-problem

Final Remarks

Of course, the underlying problem is that few of the people who campaigned or voted for Leave in 2016 gave so much as a second’s thought to Northern Ireland. And for a long time, the UK Government has tried to conceal the real nature and scale of the Irish border problem by simply promising the undeliverable – all the while captive to the highly partisan demands of the DUP, in order to maintain its own parliamentary majority.

At some point very soon, the conundrum will have to be solved. Because as the EU has made clear: without a workable and acceptable backstop, the entire negotiations could break down. And if that happens: it means no withdrawal agreement; no transitional period; and the prospects for a reasonably prompt negotiation on the future EU-UK relationship set back considerably.

Yet such a “no deal” scenario is perhaps the worst possible outcome for Northern Ireland and the Republic – since it risks precisely the prospect of an immediate customs and regulatory border and a direct threat to economic, social and political stability – something the UK’s contradictory promises in the Joint Report would then do precious little to help. To add insult to injury, should that nightmare scenario materialise, one can already foresee the reaction of the UK Government as well as their DUP allies: responsibility will lie firmly with everyone else in the world – everyone apart from the Leave campaigners whose uncompromising ideological belief system caused this entire mess in the first place…

varian

Going back to 2016 those of us who argued positively for the UK to Remain in the EU, highlighted the "Irish problem" as an insolvable conundrum.

The Good Friday agreement stipulated that there should never be a border between NI and the Republic of Ireland.

If the UK was out of the EU there would need to be a border somewhere.

If the border could not be on the island of Ireland then the only other option would be a border in the Irish Sea, between NI and Great Britain.

Simple logic.

The DUP not only campaigned for Leave but also enabled the May government to block a second vote where the logic of the NI conundrum could have been tested.

They now have the affrontery to block the NI Assembly because they object to checks taking place between GB and NI.

How can they possibly attempt to justify such illogical behaviour?

But this explained by so many, including top experts like Prof Dougan of Liverpool University- VERY clearly, again and again. So no one can now say that this is a 'surprise'. The effect on the NI Agreement, of the deal Johnson and Frost negotiated was crystal clear, and it was explained to all.

varian

Doesn't it worry you that one of our legislators (i.e lawmakers) wants us to believe that a) they're good at it and b) it's perfectly OK for laws to be faulty? When the statements are contradictory...

Going back to 2016 those of us who argued positively for the UK to Remain in the EU, highlighted the "Irish problem" as an insolvable conundrum.

The Good Friday agreement stipulated that there should never be a border between NI and the Republic of Ireland.

If the UK was out of the EU there would need to be a border somewhere.

If the border could not be on the island of Ireland then the only other option would be a border in the Irish Sea, between NI and Great Britain.

Simple logic.

The DUP not only campaigned for Leave but also enabled the May government to block a second vote where the logic of the NI conundrum could have been tested.

They now have the affrontery to block the NI Assembly because they object to checks taking place between GB and NI.

How can they possibly attempt to justify such illogical behaviour?

Thanks for commenting

I was thinking in the wider context of this minister, a minister, for heaven's sake, not just an MP, saying, in effect, that our legislators can't legislate properly

Who does he think is going to put their mistakes right, if they're supposed to be the ones making the law?

Is this an acceptable excuse for any badly written law?

This 100%

''The truth is that this was a shoddy negotiation, rushed through to satisfy the political ambition of a charlatan PM and the Brexit loons who controlled his parliamentary majority.''

There were months of negotiations, the problems were well known, the EU were not compromising on their regulations and no exceptions or concessions were going to be made.
The UK finally acquiesced thinking they could negotiate concessions later or ignore the regulations, that is the current state of play.