UK Looks for Ways to Avoid Border Checks on Goods Passing to Northern Ireland – Reports

MOSCOW (Sputnik) – The United Kingdom’s Brexit team is looking for ways to work around the withdrawal agreement’s Northern Ireland protocol to ensure checks on goods passing from the UK to Northern Ireland are avoided, the Sunday Times newspaper reported on Sunday.

Taskforce Europe, headed by the UK’s chief EU negotiator David Frost, is said to be currently engaged in drawing up the plans to avoid the implementation of the protocol, which, London believes, would allow UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson to have an upper hand in his negotiations on future trade ties with Brussels, the Sunday Times newspaper reported.

Sources told the outlet that the new UK Attorney-General Suella Braverman was given the position because her predecessor, Geoffrey Cox, was not willing to approve the plan that the EU might consider as a violation of the Brexit deal with the UK.

The Northern Ireland protocol stipulates that the UK territory follows the EU customs law after Brexit so that goods passing to the region from the UK are required to undergo customs checks at the border.

As of January 31, the United Kingdom left the European Union under the bilateral deal. However, the sides have until the end of the year to negotiate future trade relations.

Sourse: sputniknews.com