Brexit: Talks on Northern Ireland Protocol 'making slow progress'

Talks between Brussels and London about the Northern Ireland Protocol are said to be making slow progress.

Technical talks continue but no proper “big meetings” have taken place this week, with many officials on leave.

EU sources say they were still waiting for the UK to clearly set out its position.

The protocol keeps Northern Ireland aligned with some EU trade rules to ensure goods can move freely across the Irish land border after Brexit.

The UK wants a fundamental rewrite of the treaty while the EU believes sufficient “flexibilities” can be found within the existing text.

Unionist parties argue that it has undermined Northern Ireland’s place within the UK by effectively creating a trade border with Great Britain.

The Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) has refused to return to the governing executive at Stormont until the protocol is scrapped or changed – and power-sharing has stalled in Northern Ireland as a result.

But on Friday Northern Ireland Secretary Chris Heaton-Harris said there would not be a Stormont assembly election before Christmas.

It is understood that the Irish government pushed for the Stormont election to be delayed.

May’s election resulted in Sinn Féin – a nationalist party that supports the protocol – winning the most seats at Stormont for the first time.

Diplomats have said it is not yet exactly clear to them what direction Prime Minister Rishi Sunak wants to take on the protocol – as well as on wider international issues.

“It’s understandable but regrettable that he seems to be tied up in domestic politics,” said one diplomat.

The warmer mood music – that preceded Mr Sunak’s arrival in Downing Street – is still being welcomed in Brussels but many are asking: “What’s the substance?”

There are hopes some progress can be made in the protocol talks over the coming weeks – with customs and trade-data sharing frequently cited as areas of possible progress.

However, the Northern Ireland Protocol Bill – which is making its way through Parliament – is still regarded in Brussels as a “poisonous” cloud over negotiations.

The legislation could hand UK ministers powers to unilaterally start changing parts of the mutually agreed treaty.

There are warnings that if the bill became law relations would soon be in a “bad place”.,

Technical talks restarted during the brief premiership of Liz Truss, after a gap of many months.

The UK essentially wants to eliminate checks on goods arriving into Northern Ireland that are destined to stay there.

The European Commission says its proposals mean controls can be significantly eased.

There are other areas of dispute such as tax arrangements, business subsidies and governance.

The UK previously softened demands to remove the European Court of Justice from its oversight role.

But political pressure on that issue, from some on the Conservative benches, is likely to continue.

And while Mr Sunak is yet to clearly outline his thoughts on the protocol, he inherited a position whereby the UK wanted the actual text of the treaty to be renegotiated.

Government insiders have suggested that the approach remains broadly the same, signalled by a decision to keep Chris Heaton-Harris as Northern Ireland secretary and James Cleverly at the Foreign Office.

That is because of claims that problems with the protocol are “baked in” to the text.

However, the EU argues that trying to rewrite the treaty would create even more uncertainty and believes sufficient flexibilities can be found within it.

The European Commission’s heavily hinted it could start hitting the UK with trade sanctions should the powers be put into use.