European Commission: ‘No breakthrough yet in talks between Brussels and London on Northern Ireland’ – Europe
Talks between the European Commission and the government on the implementation of the agreements made in the context of Brexit on Ireland and Northern Ireland are progressing constructively. European Commissioner Maros Sefcovic said this on Monday, after a new meeting with British Foreign Secretary Liz Truss. “I would summarize the talks as neither a breakthrough nor a failure,” Sefcovic said afterwards.
Sefcovic and Truss will hold a new meeting of the Joint Committee on Monday to implement the agreement on the United Kingdom’s withdrawal. The two most important topics were discussed: the rights of European citizens in the UK and British citizens in the EU, and the implementation of the protocol on Ireland and Northern Ireland.
In a joint statement agreed after the meeting, sefco that safeguarding the Good Friday remains vital to paramount interests. This means that there should be no hard border on the island of Ireland, even if the solution that has been worked out for this for a few years has involved a lot of expenditure on the British side. Firstly, think of goods being transported from Great Britain to Northern Ireland and now having to pass controls. Better agreements have been negotiated for months, but they have not yet yielded a definitive result.
“I would summarize the talks as neither a breakthrough nor a failure,” Sefcovic said. After contacts with the Northern Irish business community, he remains convinced that ‘we must remain focused on practical solutions, especially on the trade of sanitary and phytosanitary goods’. On civil rights, Sefcovic expresses concern about what he sees as the shaky residence status of EU citizens in the UK. “I regret the British position and will take our next steps,” he said.
Sefcovic and Truss will hold a new meeting of the Joint Committee on Monday to implement the agreement on the United Kingdom’s withdrawal. The two most important topics were discussed: the rights of European citizens in the UK and British citizens in the EU, and the implementation of the protocol on Ireland and Northern Ireland. In a joint statement agreed after the meeting, sefco that safeguarding the Good Friday remains vital to paramount interests. This means that there should be no hard border on the island of Ireland, even if the solution that has been worked out for this for a few years has involved a lot of expenditure on the British side. Firstly, think of goods being transported from Great Britain to Northern Ireland and now having to pass controls. Better agreements have been negotiated for months, but they have not yet yielded a definitive result. “I would summarize the talks as neither a breakthrough nor a failure,” Sefcovic said. After contacts with the Northern Irish business community, he remains convinced that ‘we must remain focused on practical solutions, especially on the trade of sanitary and phytosanitary goods’. On civil rights, Sefcovic expresses concern about what he sees as the shaky residence status of EU citizens in the UK. “I regret the British position and will take our next steps,” he said.