THE UK Government has been warned that a Brexit trade deal with the United States is “very unlikely” if the Good Friday Agreement is undermined.
Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the House, has been in the UK in recent days and met with Boris Johnson. Speaking at a Chatham House event today, she expressed concerns over Brexit’s impact on Northern Ireland.
Johnson discussed Northern Ireland’s Brexit deal with Pelosi during the senior US politician’s visit to Downing Street yesterday. The Speaker of the US House of Representatives has long been a critic of the Prime Minister’s approach to the issue.
Downing Street said Johnson raised the Northern Ireland Protocol with Pelosi and “outlined the UK’s concerns” with the way the deal is being implemented.
US President Joe Biden – who has Irish ancestry – and other senior democrats including Pelosi are taking a keen interest in the situation.
The UK wants to rewrite the protocol, which avoids a hard border with Ireland by effectively keeping Northern Ireland in the European Union’s single market for goods.
That has led to trade barriers for goods crossing the Irish Sea from Great Britain.
At a time when the UK was considering overriding parts of the agreement in 2020, Pelosi warned that Congress would never pass a free trade agreement with the UK if the Government’s actions imperilled the peace process.
Following Pelosi’s meeting with Johnson on Thursday, a Downing Street spokesman said: “The Prime Minister raised the issue of the Northern Ireland Protocol.
“He outlined the UK’s concerns with the way the protocol is being implemented and the impact it is having on the people of Northern Ireland.
“The Prime Minister and Speaker Pelosi both agreed on the importance of preserving peace in Northern Ireland.”
The two politicians also discussed the US-UK relationship and the importance of tackling climate change.
Pelosi said: “Respectful of the will of the British people and Brexit, I reiterated the strong bipartisan support that the Good Friday Accords continue to enjoy in the United States Congress and our hope that the ongoing negotiations will yield a positive outcome that recognises this landmark agreement.”
READ MORE: UK Government to take 'Brexit opportunity' to bring back imperial measures
Pelosi invited the Prime Minister to a “bipartisan leadership meeting” in the US Capitol during his visit to the States later this month.
She said: “In our meeting, Prime Minister Johnson and I discussed shared priorities including combating the climate crisis and tackling the coronavirus pandemic.
“I thanked the Prime Minister for hosting Cop26 and for his work to make it a success.
“On Covid, I complimented the Prime Minister for his leadership in the fight, as we all work to turn the corner on the pandemic.”
Why are you making commenting on The National only available to subscribers?
We know there are thousands of National readers who want to debate, argue and go back and forth in the comments section of our stories. We’ve got the most informed readers in Scotland, asking each other the big questions about the future of our country.
Unfortunately, though, these important debates are being spoiled by a vocal minority of trolls who aren’t really interested in the issues, try to derail the conversations, register under fake names, and post vile abuse.
So that’s why we’ve decided to make the ability to comment only available to our paying subscribers. That way, all the trolls who post abuse on our website will have to pay if they want to join the debate – and risk a permanent ban from the account that they subscribe with.
The conversation will go back to what it should be about – people who care passionately about the issues, but disagree constructively on what we should do about them. Let’s get that debate started!
Callum Baird, Editor of The National
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel