May vows to avoid hard Ireland border as she seeks changes to Brexit deal
Theresa May sought to reassure Northern Irish business leaders today that she will not allow a Brexit deal to create a hard border in Ireland.
Delivering a speech in Belfast, the Prime Minister said her commitment to avoiding a hard border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland is “unshakeable”.
Read more: Chris Grayling: Brussels will be to blame if there is a no-deal Brexit
Instead, May told businesses she would strike a deal with the EU that “commands broad support” as well as a parliamentary majority.
Her speech comes after MPs delivered a resounding defeat to May’s withdrawal agreement in December, over a key measure designed to prevent a hard border in Ireland.
Addressing businesses today, May said: “I know that many people in Northern Ireland, and indeed across this island, are worried about what parliament’s rejection of the withdrawal deal means for them.
“So I am here today to affirm my commitment … to delivering a Brexit that ensures no return to a hard border between Northern Ireland and Ireland – which is unshakeable.”
But May also admitted that “the need for changes to the backstop is the key issue”, with the arrangement currently tying the UK into a customs union with the EU after Brexit in order to prevent a hard border.
Arlene Foster, the leader of the DUP, dismissed the “toxic” backstop ahead of May’s speech, though suggested that if it is “dealt with” the party would support May’s deal.
The Prime Minister is currently seeking changes from the EU to the backstop after parliament backed a key Brexit amendment last week that urges May to replace the measure with “alternative arrangements”.
The Prime Minister is due to visit Brussels on Thursday to discuss Brexit with European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker, who has so far ruled out a renegotiation of the Brexit deal.
However, German chancellor Angela Merkel has called for “creativity” to break the Brexit stalemate.
May said she was committed to securing changes that mean the UK would avoid the risk of a no-deal Brexit – but doing so without scrapping the Good Friday Agreement.
“I will not do anything to put that at risk,” she said.
Read more: Weathering the storm: City expects minimal Brexit impact on jobs
“I know that the prospect of changing the backstop and re-opening the withdrawal agreement creates real anxieties here in Northern Ireland and in Ireland,” May added.
“I understand what a hard border would mean – not just in terms of the disruption at the border itself, but in terms of trade for the whole island.”