Boris Johnson plays down UK-EU rift over Northern Ireland at G7 summit
Boris Johnson has tried to play down tensions between the UK and EU over Northern Ireland, after days of tense exchanges with European leaders at the G7 summit in Cornwall.
Johnson said at his closing press conference that “the vast majority of the conversations we’ve had over the past three or four days have been about other subjects” and that Northern Ireland “occupied a vestigial, vanishingly small proportion of our deliberations”.
The UK and EU are locked in negotiations over the application of the post-Brexit protocol, with an upcoming EU ban on Great Britain sausages entering Northern Ireland causing friction.
The Prime Minister’s attempt to cool tensions comes after foreign secretary Dominic Raab said earlier today that comments reportedly made by French President Emmanuel Macron about Northern Ireland were “offensive” and disrespectful.
Multiple media outlets reported that Johnson was trying to explain the anger over the upcoming sausage ban at his bilateral meeting with Macron yesterday, telling him that he would not be happy if meats could not be transported from Toulouse to Paris.
The French President is said to have replied that the comparison does not work as Paris and Toulouse are in the same country, unlike Northern Ireland and Great Britain.
Johnson refused to say confirm whether these comments were made at his press conference today.
“What I will say is I think it’s the job of the government for the UK to uphold the territorial integrity of the UK,” he said.
“I think it was a point I made yesterday.”
Macron was more open in his G7 press conference today, telling journalists that “inconsistencies from the British side shouldn’t be blamed on the EU”.
Speaking to Sky News earlier today, Raab said Macron’s comments on Northern Ireland were “not only offensive, it has real world effects in the communities in Northern Ireland, creates great concern, creates great consternation”.
He added: “But also, could you imagine if we talked about Catalonia, the Flemish part of Belgium, one of the lander in Germany, northern Italy, Corsica in France as different countries?
“We need a bit of respect here, and also, frankly, an appreciation of the situation for all communities in Northern Ireland.”
The UK and EU are in the midst of tense negotiations over how to implement the post-Brexit Northern Ireland protocol, with Johnson’s government calling for a more relaxed approach on customs checks for goods going between Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
The UK government argues that the imposition of stringent checks are damaging the economy and leading to tensions in the unionist community.
The EU, meanwhile, want to avoid unchecked food and medicines entering into its single market through Northern Ireland.
One area of disagreement is the future of chilled meats, like minced beef and sausages, produced in Great Britain as they are set to be banned in Northern Ireland from the end of this month.
Johnson has threatened to ignore the upcoming ban – something the EU has warned could cause a trade war.
“We’re going to fix it, we’re going to fix it in a pragmatic way, but it’s about making sure we protect the Good Friday peace process and the integrity of the UK,” Johnson said.