Foreign Secretary James Cleverly and the European Commission’s Maros Sefcovic set to formally sign-off Windsor Framework amid continued DUP opposition

Foreign Secretary James Cleverly and the European Commission’s Maros Sefcovic will together chair a meeting that will see the UK and the EU formally adopt the new arrangements for Northern Ireland, a deal sealed last month following protracted negotiations.

MPs on Wednesday overwhelmingly backed regulations to implement the Stormont brake, a key part of the Windsor Framework, despite former prime ministers Boris Johnson and Liz Truss joining the Democratic Unionist Party and hardline Brexit-backing Tory MPs in voting against the deal.

The formal sign-off comes as Sir Jeffrey Donaldson’s party continues to oppose the deal brokered by the Government, with no sign of the DUP yet being willing to return to powersharing.

Northern Ireland Secretary Chris Heaton-Harris warned the DUP that there was no prospect of renegotiating the deal ahead of today’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 will come at a Withdrawal Agreement Joint Committee meeting, with the Foreign Secretary and Mr Sefcovic from the EC also set 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.

“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 continuing stand-off over Stormont suggests the prospects for a return to powersharing at Stormont in time for the 25th anniversary next month of the Belfast / 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.