Irish PM Micheál Martin calls for ‘reset’ of relations with the UK
Irish Prime Minister Micheál Martin has called for a “reset” of relations with the UK in a bid to cool tensions between the countries over Northern Ireland post-Brexit.
Martin today said he and the EU were “concerned” about the UK’s tougher stance toward issues on Northern Ireland in the past few months, which has seen Brussels launch legal action against Britain for making unilateral decisions on customs checks in Northern Ireland.
Speaking to the Financial Times, Martin said: “I’ve made it very clear to our European Union partners that the British-Irish relationship is a unique one, historically rooted.
“We’re both joint custodians of the [Good Friday] agreement and nothing can come between us in respect of making sure that we work constructively together.
“That’s our aim and our objective as a government — to maintain a constructive relationship with Britain.”
Northern Ireland still follows the EU’s single market and customs union rules, while the rest of the UK does not, which puts a so-called border in the Irish sea when it comes to trade.
It was agreed there would be a short grace period after the rest of the UK left the single market and customs union on 1 January and that things like food, medicines and parcels going from Great Britain to Northern Ireland would not face customs checks until April.
However, the UK moved last month to unilaterally extend the grace period until October without first informing the EU of its intentions.
The move infuriated the EU, with officials saying it was a breach of the Brexit Withdrawal Agreement – a charge the UK denies.
The EU has launched legal action over the matter.
Irish foreign minister Simon Coveney said at the time that the saga showed that the EU “simply cannot trust” the UK.
“It’s the British government essentially breaking the protocol, breaking their own commitments again, and the EU having to then consider how they respond to that,” he said.
Lord David Frost, the UK’s defacto Brexit minister, hit back by saying the UK’s actions were “lawful” and that the EU needed to stop sulking over Brexit.