War of words over border intensifies

The UK’s international trade minister, Liam Fox, shot down suggestions that the issue could be resolved before the EU negotiations move to the next stage.

Dr Fox was speaking after the EU agriculture commissioner Phil Hogan said that problems around the border could be solved by remaining in the customs union and single market, or allowing Northern Ireland to do so.

Both the UK government and the DUP have made clear that this cannot happen, because the whole of the UK will be departing both.

The row intensified yesterday when Mr Hogan spoke to the Observer newspaper, in the wake of Saturday’s triumphal DUP conference, in which both the leader Arlene Foster and the deputy leader Nigel Dodds reiterated their belief that Brexit could not be implemented in a way that created a border within the UK.

Dr Fox’s intervention came amid a co-ordinated and increasingly emphatic position by the Irish government that it will block Brexit talks moving on in December unless there is a clear pledge to prevent a hard border.

Last week, Dublin’s foreign minister appeared to imply that no solution was acceptable to them other than Northern Ireland staying in both the single market and customs union.

The Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has also said a hard border is not acceptable.

Theresa May has been given until December 4 to come up with further proposals on issues including the border, the Brexit divorce bill and citizens’ rights if European leaders are to give the green light to moving on to the next phase of negotiations covering the future trading relationship between the UK and Brussels.

Dr Fox said: “We don’t want there to be a hard border but the UK is going to be leaving the customs union and the single market.”

He told Sky News that “we can’t come to a final answer to the Irish question until we get an idea of the end state”.

Dr Fox said: “We have always had exceptions for Ireland, whether it’s in our voting rights, our rights of residence in the UK, we have always accepted a certain asymmetry and that will have to be part of whatever agreement we come to with the European Union but ... until we get into discussions with the EU on the end state that will be very difficult ...”

Mrs Foster, in her conference address on Saturday, said: “We will not support any arrangements that create barriers to trade between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK or any suggestion that Northern Ireland, unlike the rest of the UK, will have to mirror European regulations.”

Hours earlier, Mr Dodds said the DUP will try to ensure “Brexit is delivered, while ensuring that nothing is done which undermines the integrity of the United Kingdom”.

But Irish European affairs minister Helen McEntee said yesterday: “We cannot say that there is sufficient progress on the Irish issue when there has not been.”

Ireland’s European Commission member Phil Hogan said “if the UK or Northern Ireland remained in the EU customs union, or better still the single market, there would be no border issue”.

He told The Observer he was “amazed at the blind faith that some in London place in theoretical future free trade agreements”.