British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak on Monday signed a new trade deal with the European Union designed to remedy problems caused by the Northern Ireland Protocol but after he will need to convince his own party to vote for any prospective deal through parliament. This part of the Brexit deal mandates checks on some goods that travel to Northern Ireland from the rest of the U.K. Ireland is part of the EU. The majority of controls and checks will disappear on goods destined to remain in Northern Ireland and the role of the ECJ as the ultimate arbiter of disputes will be removed. “We have now made a decisive breakthrough. Together, we have changed the original protocol, and are today announcing the new Windsor framework,” Sunak said at a press conference with the European Commission president, Ursula von der Leyen, in Windsor. “This is the beginning of a new chapter in a relationship,” he even added.
The agreement is the culmination of four months of intense negotiations. Sunak says he looks forward to working with Von der Leyen on future matters, including climate change and migration. Von der Leyen seclared the EU is fully committed to safeguarding the Good Friday Agreeement and to avoid a hard border on the island of Ireland.
