Simon Coveney: 'No Brexit withdrawal agreement without the backstop'

Tánaiste Simon Coveney has once again reiterated that the European Union will not renegotiate the Brexit withdrawal agreement with the United Kingdom.

Writing in the Sunday Times today, Mr Coveney said there would be no withdrawal agreement without the backstop, an insurance policy to ensure that there is not a hard border on the island of Ireland in the event of a no-deal Brexit.