‘Dublin is furious’ at British plans to scrap NI protocol

Those moves are seen in Dublin as the "declaration of a trade war with the EU", one which shows "little or no regard for Northern Ireland".

The Government is "furious" at British plans to scrap parts of the Northern Protocol, despite assurances the moves will be "lawful and correct".

Government sources said while they had yet to see the details of the legislation, due to be published today, they expect Boris Johnson's government to give ministers powers to tear up customs processes between Britain and Northern Ireland, as well as scraping the role of the European Court of Justice.

Those moves are seen in Dublin as the "declaration of a trade war with the EU", one which shows "little or no regard for Northern Ireland".

"This is about Liz Truss doing to Boris what Boris did to Theresa May in terms of throwing red meat to the ERG," a senior source said.

"I think it’s fair to say Dublin is furious."

A spokesperson for Foreign Affairs Minister Simon Coveney, who last week said any such moves would be a "new low", said the issues with the protocol can be solved at the negotiating table.

“We haven’t seen the detail of the UK bill but it goes without saying that breaking international law would be a retrograde step for the UK. Britain negotiated and passed the protocol into law fully aware of its commitments. The genuine concerns of unionism can be addressed by negotiation with the EU but the U.K. hasn’t come to the table since February.”

Northern Secretary Brandon Lewis said yesterday that any moves by the British government will conform to the letter of the law. Asked if the new legislation will be in breach of the law, Mr Lewis told Sky News: “The legislation we’ll outline is within the law. What we’re going to do is lawful and it is correct.

“We will be setting out our legal position on this. People will see that what we’re proposing resolves the key issues within the protocol that don’t work.”

However, Sinn Féin President Mary Lou McDonald said Mr Lewis "talking through his hat" and said the protocol is working as is.

Also speaking on Sky News, she said: "What the Tory government is proposing to do in breaching international law is to create huge, huge damage to the northern economy, to the Irish economy.

“They propose to breach international law and are on an agenda of undermining, attacking and damaging the Good Friday Agreement.”

Mrs McDonald continued: “Brandon Lewis is talking through his hat, and not for the first time.

“Brandon Lewis should know, the Tory government should know, that where there are issues to be resolved with the protocol, issues of smoothing out its application, there are mechanisms through which that can happen."

The Irish Farmers Association President Tim Cullinan said there was increasing concern within the farming community about proposed changes to the Northern Ireland protocol.

He said trade between north and south is working well and is operating in a positive way.

“Whatever the merits of the deal that was eventually agreed in December 2020, it has to be honoured. We have always said that Brexit would be damaging for our sector, but further unilateral changes will only add to the problem,” he said.

The UK Labour Party's shadow Chancellor Rachel Reeves said Mr Johnson's government "seems to be developing a record for lawbreaking and it is not one that the Labour Party can support".

“We helped bring in the Good Friday agreement, we are deeply, passionately committed to it," she added.