Northern Ireland deal hailed in UK
British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen after a press conference at Windsor Guildhall, England, Monday, February 27, 2023. AP - Dan Kitwood
Text by: RFI Follow
2 mins
The Brexit book continues to be written.
Last chapter in date, written Monday February 27, an agreement between the European Union and the United Kingdom on the question of Northern Ireland, which in particular lightens the customs controls on the goods intended only for the Northern Irish market.
Everywhere in the British press this Tuesday, we welcome this new agreement whose Rishi Sunak tries to sell the merits in Belfast.
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“
Has Rishi achieved the impossible?
asks the
Daily Mail
, for whom the risk of revolt among the Conservatives disappeared on Tuesday.
"
Look who got Brexit done
," says
The Independent
.
Under the title, a photo of Boris Johnson, the former Prime Minister ready to do anything to challenge the historic advance of his rival, relates
our correspondent in London
,
Marie Boëda
.
For the
Times,
Britain has regained control.
"
He did it, he succeeded
", can we read in the
Telegraph
which quotes a majority MP, Eurosceptic, which confirms that even the most suspicious line up behind the Prime Minister.
However, there is a “but”.
The devil is in the details, recalls an editorialist from the same newspaper, when Ursula von der Leyen clarified that the European Court of Justice would always have the last word.
This is how the fate of Northern Ireland as a vassal state of Brussels was confirmed, she regrets.
In Northern Ireland, moreover,
The Irish News
and the
Belfast Telegraph
remain cautious.
They quote the DUP, unionist party at the initiative of many blockages in the discussions, for which this agreement is not sufficient.
They will study the text, it will take several days.
A deputy declared: “
We will not accept blackmail or flattery
”.
Rishi Sunak in Belfast to convince on his agreement with the EU
Moreover, British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is in Belfast on February 28, in Northern Ireland, reports our correspondent in Dublin,
Laura Taouchanov
.
It is a delicate mission: he must try to convince the various parties to adhere to the agreement concluded the day before with the European Union.
► To read also: Unionists and Republicans remain cautious on the agreement on Northern Ireland
This Tuesday morning, he answered questions from worried business owners.
“
It's an exceptional offer
,” he told them, arms open, with a big smile.
“
Northern Ireland is in a unique position worldwide: you have privileged access to the UK market and the European single market.
Nobody else has that.
»
The British Prime Minister assured them that international companies will want to work with them as they dominate this commercial area.
The next step for Rishi Sunak will be to convince the unionists, the ultra-conservative Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) who have been blocking the functioning of the local executive for a year and refuse any application of European law in the British province.
The political involvement of Charles III questions
If the Windsor agreement is generally welcomed across the Channel, the meeting over a cup of tea between the President of the European Commission and the king angers some politicians, says
Marie Boëda
, our correspondent in London.
“
It's rude, it's going to go badly in Northern Ireland.
The reaction of the former leader of the DUP, a party close to the United Kingdom, was quick.
A tete-a-tete also frowned upon by some Eurosceptic conservatives who see it as a stroke of pressure to force them to support the agreement.
An alliance sealed at Windsor in the hall where Charles III married Camilla;
portraits of former monarchs sat above Rishi Sunak and Ursula von der Leyen.
And the question that everyone is asking today: who took this initiative?
No answer.
Buckingham, Downing Street and the European Commission pass the buck.
"
The meeting took place before the vote in the British Parliament
", underlines the brexitor Jacob Rees Mogg.
“
It is not wise from a constitutional point of view.
The sovereign represents the whole country, he must stay away from politics, especially when it comes to such a sensitive subject.
According to the former BBC royal correspondent, Charles III has abandoned his unifying role.
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