Commons Sense

House of Commons · Ministers' Questions

Northern Ireland Protocol: Implementation 2021-06-16 (2)

Wednesday 16 June 2021 · 3 questions

Summarised by AI from the official record, so it can contain mistakes.

Read the full transcript on Parliament.uk

At a glance

Answered 0 Partly answered 2 Not answered 0

Key points

  • Kevin Brennan questioned the effectiveness of the Northern Ireland Protocol implementation and its financial support measures.
  • The government responded that the protocol aims to respect the UK market and the Good Friday/Belfast Agreement, though challenges persist.
  • Ian Paisley Jnr accused the protocol of partitioning the UK and harming businesses and politics, to which the government defended the necessity of checks on goods at risk of entering the EU.

Topics (select to filter)

Questions & Answers

Q1 Kevin Brennan Lab
Northern Ireland
Context

The MP is questioning the assessment of the protocol's effectiveness given ongoing challenges and impacts on trade.

Question

What recent assessment has been made of the effectiveness of the implementation of the Northern Ireland Protocol?

Answer from Brandon Lewis

We have taken extensive steps to implement the protocol, including providing £500 million for a range of support schemes. The trader support service alone has created 1.8 million declarations and supported nearly 700,000 consignments since January. Despite these efforts, significant challenges persist with trade disruption affecting livelihoods.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Did not provide a specific assessment of the protocol's effectiveness beyond acknowledging ongoing issues.

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Q2 Kevin Brennan Lab
Northern Ireland
Context

The MP questions whether the Prime Minister has followed through on his commitments regarding the protocol.

Question

Is not the truth that the Prime Minister signed up for something in the protocol that he had no intention of honouring, in the way and practice he has followed throughout his life?

Answer from Brandon Lewis

The protocol is clear it will not disrupt everyday lives but respect the UK market and Good Friday/Belfast agreement. Arguably, two of these things are in breach now, so we have a duty to deliver for Northern Ireland's people.

Not addressed: Did not address whether the Prime Minister followed through on his commitments but instead discussed the protocol's aims and breaches.

How: Changed Subject

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Q3 Ian Paisley Jnr DUP
Northern Ireland
Context

The MP is concerned about the protocol leading to increased checks and undermining business ties within the United Kingdom.

Question

Is it not a fact that the protocol has partitioned the United Kingdom, undermined businesses, damaged political fabric, and when will this be fixed?

Answer from Brandon Lewis

The protocol deals with goods at risk or moving into the EU. It is farcical to have checks on products not entering the EU, such as supermarkets without Irish stores going through checks. We want to resolve this issue and respect the single market while focusing on protecting the Good Friday/Belfast agreement.

Partly answered

Not addressed: Did not provide a specific timeline for fixing issues but addressed the nature of current problems.

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