(Bloomberg) — The UK still sees “big gaps” with the European Union over post-Brexit arrangements in Northern Ireland, Foreign Secretary James Cleverly said, despite improving relations with the bloc overall.
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While some progress has been made on a live database tracking goods moving from Britain to Northern Ireland, there is no resolution and the two sides are not on the cusp of a deal, Cleverly told Parliament on Tuesday.
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Cleverly struck a notably more cautionary tone than Irish Foreign Minister Simon Coveney, who said last week that an agreement is “doable” by the end of the year. The British government does want the issue to be resolved because it’s central to the restoration of Northern Ireland’s power-sharing government, which has not functioned since February.
The UK wants an agreement that will have the support of the Democratic Unionist Party, which is blocking the formation of the devolved government in protest at the terms of the original UK-EU Brexit deal keeping the region in the bloc’s single market.
The UK has extended the deadline for the region’s executive to be formed, pushing back an election and providing more space for EU talks. Cleverly said he has repeatedly told the bloc he won’t agree to any proposals that don’t have cross-community support in Northern Ireland.
“However we resolve this has got to address” the UK’s concerns, Cleverly said, referring to the political impasse in the region. “I don’t yet see a route through that, we’re still looking and if we can find one I’m very, very happy to but those concerns are there and they can’t just be wished away.”
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The bloc began testing the UK’s real-time trade flow system for the first time last week and if it’s satisfied, it could pave the way for an agreement on customs checks — one of the issues they must resolve to get a wider deal. Major hurdles beyond the checks include the governance of Northern Ireland, and the ability to extend taxation changes to the region, among others.
“A good working relationship, regular conversations, goodwill and trust are necessary but not sufficient,” Cleverly said. “Those ingredients are there but we shouldn’t rush to the conclusion that therefore everything is about to come good, because there is still serious work to do and there are still big gaps.”
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