Irish Examiner view: Micheál Martin could be the man of the moment

Taoiseach and other EU leaders will respond 'in a calm and firm way' to Britain's next move on Brexit and the Protocol

Like his fellow EU leaders, Micheál Martin will patiently navigate whatever Downing Street comes up with next. Picture: Frederick Florin/AFP/Getty

It would be understandable if something in the mind of Taoiseach Micheál Martin whispered to him, that he could be out of the door before time comes for wrestling with the British government and unionist politicians over the future of the Northern Ireland Protocol. Who wouldn’t be pleased to take a break from dealing with those two shades of opinion?

Happily, Mr Martin, who has grown in stature internationally during his period of office, is made of stronger mettle and will, no doubt, listen with courtesy while details emerge of what Westminster plans for the North.

The British secretary of state, Brandon Lewis, is due to brief business and industry leaders in Belfast on Thursday.

The mood from London is that a badly wounded Johnson administration, which appears to be operating on borrowed time, may double down on its determination to change an arrangement which it once described as an “excellent deal”.

European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen speaking with Taoiseach Micheál Martin and European Council president Charles Michel during the plenary session at the European Parliament on Wednesday. Picture: Frederick Florin/AFP/Getty

The Tony Blair Institute, established by one of the architects of the Good Friday Agreement, said the British government is in “disorderly retreat” and tabled a set of proposals which it said, “would require significant movement from the EU on its stated position around the protocol’s interpretation”. 

Such is the state of distrust, said Mr Blair, that interaction between the two bureaucracies will not settle this.  

"It has to be done at the highest political level because... it is not a matter of technical work but political will and leadership," Mr Blair said. 

Micheál Martin said Europe would respond “in a calm and firm way”. 

While he describes some British government criticisms as “bad faith attacks” he acknowledges that there are some reasonable criticisms of the protocol. That quiet transition from Taoiseach could be moving further away. Micheál Martin may be the man for the moment.