Prime Minister Rishi Sunak’s Brexit deal for Northern Ireland gets formal sign-off

Rishi Sunak’s Brexit deal for Northern Ireland has been formally signed off at an official meeting in London, as both the UK and the EU hope for better relations in the future.

Foreign Secretary James Cleverly and the European Commission’s Maros Sefcovic chaired a meeting on Friday to formally adopt the new arrangements for Northern Ireland, after the Government won the backing of MPs for the Windsor Framework earlier this week.

The vote by MPs in favour of regulations to implement the Stormont brake, a key part of the Windsor agreement, came despite former prime ministers Boris Johnson and Liz Truss joining the DUP and hardline Brexit-backing Tory MPs in voting against the deal.

The DUP - which is boycotting the power sharing institutions in Northern Ireland over the protocol which placed a border between NI and the rest of the UK - said the latest agreement did not go far enough to encourage them to return to government.

It's main point of opposition is that Northern Ireland will remain subject to EU laws.

The Prime Minister has said the deal gives Northern Ireland incredible access to both the EU and UK markets and said the so-called Stormont brake will allow members of the devolved parliament a say on what future EU laws will apply, while existing laws will remain in place.

Mr Cleverly has in the past said his government would not sign off on any deal with the EU unless the DUP were onboard.

Northern Ireland Secretary Chris Heaton-Harris warned the DUP that there was no prospect of renegotiating the deal ahead of Friday’s meeting, which comes after Brussels also formally agreed to the key parts of the Windsor Framework at a Council of the EU meeting.

The formal sign-off happened at a meeting of the Withdrawal Agreement Joint Committee, with the Foreign Secretary and Mr Sefcovic also due to attend a meeting of the Partnership Council – another of the implementation bodies under the Brexit deal.

“By formally approving the Windsor Framework, we are delivering on our commitment to provide stability and certainty for Northern Ireland,” Mr Cleverly said ahead of the meeting.

“The framework is the best deal for Northern Ireland, safeguarding its place in the Union and protecting the Belfast (Good Friday) Agreement.

“I look forward to further effective co-operation with the EU on key issues, such as security and energy.”

The UK hopes that the new deal on the protocol can mark a step towards British participation in the EU’s 100 billion euro Horizon programme, with science and research likely to feature in official discussions between the pair.

Mr Cleverly and Mr Sefcovic will also discuss a recent agreement between the UK, Ireland and the EU on Peace Plus, the cross-border peace funding programme.

The continuing stand-off at Stormont suggests the prospects for a return to power sharing in time for the 25th anniversary next month of the Good Friday Agreement remain bleak.

The executive and the Assembly have been suspended since the DUP walked out last year in protest at the way the Northern Ireland Protocol negotiated by Mr Johnson was operating.

On Friday morning ahead of the formal sign off of the agreement between the EU and UK, DUP MP Gregory Campbell said the deal did not bring the prospect of a return to power sharing closer.

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