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The decision comes amid warnings of potential unrest this summer unless the post-Brexit deal is radically altered.

It emerged last night that the bill enabling the Cabinet to override the protocol will not be published until next week even though it had been expected to be made public today.

The delay has raised suspicion in unionist ranks that Boris Johnson’s embattled administration is coming under internal pressure not to produce a bill that could further alienate the EU and intensify the civil war within the Tory Party after 148 Conservative MPs backed a no confidence vote against the prime minister on Monday.

DUP leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson said: “Every day the protocol remains is damaging our economy and damaging the Union.” He said the sooner the legislation is published “the sooner we will get to a solution”.

UUP leader Doug Beattie told a House of Lords committee yesterday that “societal division” in Northern Ireland was getting worse.

Warning about possible unrest this marching season, Mr Beattie said: “It doesn’t take much to go from a brick to a stone, and from a stone to a petrol bomb, and from a petrol bomb to a bullet, and from a bullet to a coffin.”

Northern Ireland Protocol: Publication of government legislation put back to next week