Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak get an easy ride on the Northern Ireland Protocol from NI Conservatives

Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak debated at the Culloden Hotel, in front of an audience of 150-200 NI Conservatives.

During the hour-long event, consisting mainly of questions from local Tory activists, only two contributors asked directly about the protocol.

In her opening remarks, Foreign Secretary Ms Truss, described herself as “a child of the Union”.

She said: “I believe that our Union is one of the key assets we have as a country. We’re not just neighbours, we’re family and I want our family to stay together and never split up.”

She added: “The fact is that the protocol is undermining the Belfast (Good Friday) Agreement, it is causing unfairness between the communities in Northern Ireland and we need to make sure that it is fixed for the future of this great part of the United Kingdom.”

In his introductory statement, Mr Sunak said that “Northern Ireland’s place in the United Kingdom is being threatened”.

The ex chancellor spoke about the late David Trimble’s contribution to negotiating the Belfast Agreement. “The detail that he was most proud of was strand 3, the East-West relationship, because he knew that would be the counterbalance to what the nationalists were after. And he had enormous foresight in making sure that was an integral part of the agreement.”

“As you know,” Mr Sunak added, “that is under threat today and I want to give you my commitment that I will do what it takes to fix the protocol and protect Northern Ireland’s place in our United Kingdom.”

The foreign secretary stressed her involvement in the development of the Northern Ireland Protocol Bill, which she said she “pushed through Whitehall”.

Ms Truss claimed that the UK courts “need to be the ultimate arbiter” on disputes between Britain and the European Union on the protocol”.

She said: “We need to sort out the bureaucracy across the Irish Sea, so that we can see goods flowing freely from Great Britain to Northern Ireland. And that’s why I put forward the solution of green and red lanes.

“We also need to sort out regulation and we need to make sure that the people of Northern Ireland can benefit from the same tax breaks as the people of GB.”

Both of the only two audience questions on the Irish Sea border were addressed to Ms Truss.

Glyn Chambers from Belfast asked: “If the EU did come back with some sort of compromise on the protocol, that was nevertheless well short of the Protocol Bill, would you accept that?”

The foreign secretary said: “I will not accept anything that doesn’t deliver on the key issue ... making sure the UK courts are the ultimate arbiter, making sure that we have free flowing east-west trade.

“Making sure that the people of NI can benefit from tax benefits ... but also sorting out the regulatory system.

“I won’t accept anything less than that.”

Roger Gilpin from Belfast accused successive secretaries of state and prime ministers of “making bold statements on the Union” but then “kow-towing to the NIO” and running the Province “like a colonial outpost”.

He said to applause that, “latterly (the government) has been bowing to the wishes of nationalism and are now being bossed about by international bodies, the EU, the Republic of Ireland and America”.

He asked Ms Truss to give a commitment that “you will not kow-tow and that you will lay down Conservative and unionist politics for Northern Ireland”.

Ms Truss asked to be judged on her record, emphasised that she “would be very clear with people like Nancy Pelosi” (the speaker of the US House of Representatives) and said that the Protocol Bill “is absolutely legal because we need to do it in order to restore the primacy of the Belfast Agreement”.

Other questioners asked what the candidates intended to do to restore Stormont.

Mr Sunak took the opportunity to set out his position on the Irish Sea border.

“That starts with fixing the protocol. I would seek to talk to Europe and Ireland and the French to see if we could find a negotiated outcome ... but be in no doubt about my resolve to fix the situation on the protocol.”

Ms Truss told the hustings that until the Northern Ireland Protocol is sorted, Stormont will not be back up and running.

“And I’ve been in discussions with all of the parties in Northern Ireland, I’m determined to make it happen,” Ms Truss said. “And as we make progress on the Northern Ireland Protocol Bill we will see power-sharing re-established in Northern Ireland, and as well the Belfast Good Friday Agreement re-established.”

Asked what compromises she would accept, she said: “I will not accept anything that does not deliver on the key issues I talked about.”

Ms Truss also said she is “determined” to resolve the issues facing Northern Ireland, particularly on customs, while “making sure” people in Northern Ireland can benefit from the same tax breaks as people in Great Britain.

“Now if the European Union are willing to come to a negotiated solution to achieve that, I would be absolutely willing to do that. But the bill will continue to go through Parliament and I want to get that bill through,” she added.

“At the moment the EU have refused to change the text of the protocol. In order to make those changes on tax and on customs, they need to agree to change the text.”

Ms Truss said she would ask Stormont politicians to “get back around the table”.

“It’s important for the people of Northern Ireland. There are lots of challenges that need to be dealt with. We’ve been talking about cost of living, energy, we need a government in Northern Ireland to be doing that.”

Mr Sunak said: “I think actually both Liz and I are supporting the same bill that is in Parliament, that we both support and so in that sense there isn’t a difference between us.

“My plan is the same as Liz’s plan, which is to push on and pass the bill that is in Parliament, and I’m confident that that’s the right way to resolve the situation, and people should be in no doubt that under my premiership that bill would continue to make its way through Parliament and become law.”

There were also questions about the cost of living, the threat posed by China and the deficit, as well as pledges from the candidates to support the local Conservative Party in its electoral campaigns here. Ms Truss and Mr Sunak were clearly well briefed to address the protocol, and they may be surprised that so little of the debate centred on that issue.

• Morning View; Rishi Sunak and Liz Truss show more concern at the Northern Ireland Protocol than the NI Tories do

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