Negative portrayal of NI Protocol is ‘fake news’, Assembly told – Belfast Telegraph

Negative portrayals of the impact of the Northern Ireland Protocol are fake news, the Assembly has been told.

inn Fein junior minister Declan Kearney said much of the narrative presenting the post-Brexit trading mechanism as a bad thing flies in the face of reality.

He said many businesses in the region were benefitting from the protocols dual access provision that enables Northern Ireland traders to sell goods unfettered in both the UK internal market and the EU single market.

Mr Kearney also criticised the DUP threat to walk out of the Executive if radical changes were not secured to the protocols trade barriers between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK.

He also warned the party to reconsider its accompanying decision to boycott north-south political structures as part of its protest.

The junior minister said a DUP no-show at North South Ministerial Council sectoral meetings in mid-October would be a very serious development that would be in breach of Stormonts ministerial code.

Much of the narrative around the protocol flies in the face of reality and its directly contradicted by the fact that many businesses are seeing and utilising the advantages with which the protocol provides them such, for example, as the dual market access that is available, he said.

So theres a lot of dishonesty and fake news about the place.

He added: That type of inaccuracy becomes irresponsible when its accompanied by inflammatory rhetoric and not so thinly veiled warnings and that creates more economic uncertainty but it also creates political apprehensions.

So I would urge all representatives to be responsible and where there are issues that need to be addressed lets do that in a pragmatic way that actually finds durable solutions.

As for the political repercussions, the sabre rattling needs to stop, those whipping up tensions should step back from the brink.

Lets implement the protocol properly and maintain powersharing.

Mr Kearney said next NIMS sectoral meetings were scheduled for October 14 and 15.

I expect these meetings to go ahead, he said.

Any DUP boycott of these bodies would be a very serious matter and the party involved should reflect very carefully on the implications of such a decision, as the requirement to attend ministerial council meetings is embedded within the ministerial code.

Close

Antrim East MLA for the UUP John Stewart sad the protocol was undermining east-west relations (Liam McBurney/PA)

PA

Ulster Unionist MLA John Stewart asked Mr Kearney about the protocols impact on east-west relations a key plank of the 1998 peace accord.

Does the minister agree that the Belfast Agreement was established on the basis of mutual respect, on the principle of consent, that east- west relations as well as north-south must be conducted in good faith, Mr Stewart asked.

Does he also recognise that a trade border between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK runs contrary to the ethos and the spirit of the Belfast Agreement.

Mr Kearney said he agreed with Mr Stewart and said he was opposed to any border that undermined the functioning of the Good Friday Agreement institutions.

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Negative portrayal of NI Protocol is 'fake news', Assembly told - Belfast Telegraph