Reg Empey: Sammy Wilson's attack on business over the Irish Sea border is rank hypocrisy

It is often said that attack is the best form of defence, and Sammy Wilson, with his comments on the business community's reaction to the Windsor Framework, proves that it is still a useful tactic! (‘Cowardly business groups fail to criticise the framework,’ August 10, see link below)

Sammy Wilson was the DUP's ' Mr Brexit' telling the people of Northern Ireland how much better off we would be outside the EU. What he didn't tell the people, despite being warned many times, was that without firing a shot, republicans would see the border moved from Newry to Sammy's own constituency in Larne. During the disastrous negotiations between London and Brussels, Sammy, and his colleagues at Westminster, kept the then governments of Theresa May and Boris Johnson in power.

In order to 'get Brexit done', on 2nd October 2019, Boris proposed to Brussels that a border would be established in the Irish Sea: that border inspection posts would be erected: goods coming from Great Britain to Northern Ireland would have to be notified to the authorities in advance and they would have to comply with EU regulations and EU law. This proposal was contained in a seven-page document entitled 'Explanatory Note'. On the same day as this was published, the DUP described this document as 'a serious and sensible way forward.'

In the absence of a statement dissenting from this at the time, it means that Sammy Wilson agreed with Boris's proposal for an Irish Sea Border! To now denounce business leaders is rank hypocrisy. He takes no responsibility for leading unionists into an ambush from which we have not yet recovered.

I think that Sammy and many of his colleagues feel a sense of guilt for their mistakes in 2019 and try and bluster their way out of it by attacking everybody else. As a member of the Lords Committee that recently reported on the Windsor Framework, I am very well aware of the pitfalls and problems that lie ahead, the constitutional and economic risks that are arising. But I am tired of listening to those who complain and criticise everything and everybody except themselves, as we try and find a way out of this mess.

Sammy and his colleagues were well warned about the risks of an ill prepared Brexit, but they charged on with no coherent plan for dealing with the UK/EU border which was bound to be somewhere. All of our current problems were foreseen and foreseeable. That they held the balance of power in London throughout this time makes their culpability even greater. Boris took them and the rest of us to the cleaners.

I believe that during this period in 2019 the DUP made the biggest mistakes of any unionists since partition. It would be helpful to see at least some acknowledgement that they may have got things wrong.

Unionism needs a radical and urgent rethink. Leo Varadkar's plan B is already well prepared I have no doubt. Current policies are not delivering for unionism.

Lord Empey, Former Ulster Unionist Party leader

Sammy Wilson: Business organisations should stop being so cowardly about the Windsor Framework and complain about it