IN 2019, Boris Johnson claimed he has an ‘oven-ready deal’ that would make Brexit a piece of cake. Today, Boris Johnson’s negotiating team, led by David Frost, are set to meet with Micheal Barnier and the EU’s negotiators for the eighth round of talks today.
Sources indicate that Boris Johnson is to go back on the promises he made to the British public in the 2019 General election; tearing up the Withdrawal Agreement which has already been agreed between the UK and the EU.
The ‘oven-ready deal’ seems to have got cold and been fed to the dog!
The Prime Minister now claims that his own version of the Withdrawal Agreement is ‘legally ambiguous’, ‘contradictory’; and that it needs to be rewritten.
Reports on the UK Governments plans to go back on the Withdrawal Agreement drew anger from the European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen. President Laylen stated in no uncertain terms that if the UK was to go against the legally binding withdrawal agreement, the EU will not do business with the UK in the future, saying it was a “matter of trust”.
While we were writing this article – Chief legal adviser Jonathan Jones, the head of the Government’s Legal Department, has resigned. Reports are indicating that Jones has resigned due to governments plan to scrap the Withdrawal Agreement which was already agreed and internationally legally binding.
David Frost, the UK’s head negotiator, is ready to tell Barnier that the EU needs to recognise the (obvious) ‘reality’ that the “Britain is a sovereign state who should be free to set its own laws”. A number 10 source indicated to VB that the PM simply wanted to ‘clarify’ elements of the Withdrawal Agreement to make sure they can ‘protect Northern Irelands interests’.
The reality is that Boris Johnson’s December 2019 reworking of the Withdrawal Agreement, which the Prime Minister signed; will force the UK to have a ‘sea border’ with NI; Documents leaked from the HMRC in July this year detailed procedures which have been created to manage goods crossing the UK / Northern Irish borders.
One of the key promises from former Prime Minister Theresa May in 2017, and from Boris Johnson when he became prime minister in 2019 was that there would never be a hard border in the island of Ireland and that Northern Ireland would not stay within the EU.
The UK government is set to publish new draught legistlation tommorow which many believe will breach the Withdrawal Agreement, and make a no-deal Brexit certain.
Now, in 2020, as-per the agreement made between Boris Johnson’s government and the EU, it looks most likely that Northern Ireland will remain in the EU to a degree, and that there will be a soft-border when travelling between the UK and Northern Ireland.
While Downing Street sources attempted to frame this as being the fault of the ‘previous administration’; the fact is that Boris Johnson’s team had rewritten the Withdrawal Agreement, turning it into Boris’ ‘oven-ready deal’ last December.
What we are seeing is a delay tactic. Boris Johnson has never wanted a Brexit deal and is doing his best to make his plan reality.
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