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Brexit: Irish PM Varadkar rules out three-way talks, as Sinn Fein meet with EU negotiators over Irish border

Republicans call on Theresa May to come up with solution

Brussels

Monday 05 March 2018 16:16 GMT

European Union chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier meets with Sinn Fein leader Mary Lou McDonald in Brussels (AFP/Getty Images)

Sinn Fein has called on Theresa May to come up with her own solution to the Irish border issue after its leader met with the EU’s chief Brexit negotiator Brussels on Monday.

Mary Lou McDonald and a delegation of Irish republicans travelled to Brussels on Monday to meet with Michel Barnier for what she described as a “frank, productive and positive” meeting.

“The ball is now in Mrs May's court, the ball is now in the court of the British, who say they don't like what they have seen, they don't like the solution advanced by Europe, if they don't like that we would like to know what is their solution,” Ms McDonald said.

Giving an account of her meeting with Mr Barnier, she said: “I am happy to say we have a shared understanding that there cannot be a withdrawal agreement, much less an agreement on any future relationship between Britain and the European Union, in the absence of an answer to the Irish question.”

The meeting comes on the same day as Irish prime minister Leo Varkadar ruled out the possibility of three-way talks with Ireland, the EU and the UK – as Ms May hinted she would like last week.

The biggest issues facing UK on leaving EU

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1/8The biggest issues facing UK on leaving EU

The biggest issues facing UK on leaving EU

Post-Brexit immigration

workers sorting radishes on a production line at a farm in Norfolk. One possible post-Brexit immigration scheme could struggle to channel workers towards less attractive roles - while another may heighten the risk of labour exploitation, a new report warns.

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The biggest issues facing UK on leaving EU

Customs union

A key point in the negotiations remains Britain's access to, or withdrawal from, the EU customs union. Since the referendum there has been hot debate over the meaning of Brexit: would it entail a full withdrawal from the existing agreement, known as hard Brexit, or the soft version in which we would remain part of a common customs area for most goods, as Turkey does? No 10 has so far insisted that “Brexit means Brexit” and that Britain will be leaving the customs union, but may be inclined to change its position once the potential risks to the UK’s economic outlook become clearer.

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The biggest issues facing UK on leaving EU

Northern Ireland-Irish border

Though progress was made last year, there has still been no solid agreement on whether there should be a hard border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. To ensure borderless travel on the island, the countries must be in regulatory alignment and therefore adhere to the same rules as the customs union. In December, the Conservative Party’s coalition partners, the DUP, refused a draft agreement that would place the UK/EU border in the Irish Sea due to its potential to undermine the union. May has promised that would not be the case and has suggested that a “specific solution” would need to be found.

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The biggest issues facing UK on leaving EU

Transition period

Despite protests from a small number of Conservative MPs, the Government and the EU are largely in agreement that a transitional period is needed after Brexit. The talks, however, have reached an impasse. Though May has agreed that the UK will continue to contribute to the EU budget until 2021, the PM wants to be able to select which laws made during this time the UK will have to adhere to. Chief negotiator Michel Barnier has said the UK must adopt all of the laws passed during the transition, without any input from British ministers or MEPs.

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The biggest issues facing UK on leaving EU

Rights of EU citizens living the UK

The Prime Minister has promised EU citizens already living in the UK the right to live and work here after Brexit, but the rights of those who arrive after Brexit day remains unclear. May insists that those who arrive during the transition period should not be allowed to stay, whereas the EU believe the cut-off point should be later.

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The biggest issues facing UK on leaving EU

Future trade agreement (with the EU)

Despite this being a key issue in negotiations, the Government has yet to lay out exactly what it wants from a trade deal with the EU. Infighting within the Cabinet has prevented a solid position from being reached, with some MPs content that "no deal is better than a bad deal" while others rally behind single market access. The EU has already confirmed that access to the single market would be impossible without the UK remaining in the customs union.

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The biggest issues facing UK on leaving EU

Future trade agreements (internationally)

The Government has already begun trying to woo foreign leaders into prospective trade agreements, with various high profile state visits to China, India and Canada for May, and the now infamous invitation to US President Donald Trump to visit London. However the UK cannot make trade agreements with another country while it is still a member of the EU, and the potential loss of trade with the world's major powers is a source of anxiety for the PM. The EU has said the UK cannot secure trade deals during the transition period.

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The biggest issues facing UK on leaving EU

Financial services

Banks in the UK will be hit hard regardless of the Brexit outcome. The EU has refused to give British banks passporting rights to trade within the EU, dashing hopes of a special City deal. However according to new reports Germany has suggested allowing trade on the condition that the UK continues paying into the EU budget even after the transition period.

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Michel Barnier said he had had a “good meeting” with Ms McDonald and that it was “essential to listen to all voices in Northern Ireland”. Sources close to the Commission said the discussion mainly focused on the draft protocol, released last week, which specified keeping Northern Ireland in a “common regulatory area” with the Republic.

DUP leader Arlene Foster will meet with Mr Barnier tomorrow for a similar discussion.

Arlene Foster of the DUP will meet with Mr Barnier on Tuesday (Getty)

The DUP is understood to have previously blocked a deal on the Irish border that would have effectively kept the province in the EU’s single market and customs union. Theresa May has relied on the DUP’s votes for a majority in the House of Commons since she blew her overall control of parliament with a snap election last year.

DUP won’t accept Theresa May's Irish border deal if it “separates” Northern Ireland from rest of UK

Mr Barnier insisted that this proposal respected the “constitutional integrity of the UK” but Theresa May warned that “no UK prime minister could ever agree” to such plans, with some Brexiteers characterising the proposal as the EU “annexing” Northern Ireland.

The EU however insisted that the legal text merely formalised what was agreed by the UK in December.

Theresa May says 'no Prime Minister would ever agree' to EU’s proposal for Northern Ireland to remain aligned with the Republic after Brexit

Speaking on Monday Mr Varadkar said: "There won't be tripartite or three-way talks.

"What will happen is that there will be talks between the EU 27 and the UK, and Ireland is part of the EU 27 and we're much stronger by the way as one of 27."

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