This news was never reported by the BBC or any other MSM in the UK.
In 2017, committees of the Dáil Éireann and the House of Commons were told by the heads of their respective customs authorities that no border infrastructure would be necessary as a result of Brexit — even in the event of a ‘no-deal Brexit’. In 2018 the committee of the EU parliament was told the same thing by the expert they commissioned to produce a report.
Five years ago I published the testimony of the heads of the Irish Revenue and HMRC, followed up by the testimony of the EU parliament’s expert. All of them made it clear there was no need for a “Northern Ireland Protocol. The EU then conspired with the government of Leo Varadkar to prevent the customs services of the Republic of Ireland and the United Kingdom from talking to each other.
I have chapter and verse of the testimonies of the key parties involved in ensuring trade would continue normally across the North-South border in Ireland following Brexit.
Below I present some key extracts which make it clear that there was never any need for an N.I. Protocol and that Mr Varadkar’s government and the EU Commission did what they did in order to divide the United Kingdom — for their own political ends.
Back in 2017, testimony to the parliaments was given on the basis that the entire UK (including Northern Ireland) would be OUT of the Single Market, and OUT of the Customs Union. In other words, with no Protocol.
Damning evidence against the EU and Irish government over the N.I. Protocol
1. What HMRC said about there being no need for a Protocol
Q: “In the event of no deal, would it be possible to achieve no border infrastructure?”
Sir Jon Thompson, CEO of HMRC, 2017: “We do not believe we require any infrastructure between Northern Ireland and Ireland under any circumstances.”
2. On the EU preventing the UK and Irish Customs organisations from implementing solutions
Q: “Have you had any dealings with the Irish about this?”
Sir Jon Thompson, Head of HMRC: “There are no formal conversations with either the French or the Irish. We cannot talk to Customs or taxation management organisations in either of those countries. There are only informal conversations with the Belgians and the Dutch.”
3. What the Irish Revenue said about there being no need for a Protocol
Liam Irwin (Irish Revenue Commissioner):
“We are planning for trade facilitation, enabling goods to move. We have absolutely no plans for anything along the Border at this stage.”
Q: “Revenue has identified several locations where customs posts could be erected in — — — ”
Mr Liam Irwin (Irish Customs): “That is not true.”
Q: “That is not true?”
Mr Liam Irwin (Irish Customs): “That is not true.”
4. On the EU preventing the UK and Irish Customs organisations from implementing solutions
Q: “Could Mr. Cody clarify whether there is a legal impediment to negotiations between us and — — -”
Mr Niall Cody (Irish Customs): “Yes.”
Q: “ — — -so we can have discussions but not negotiations?”
Mr Niall Cody (Irish Customs): “The European Union will be negotiating with the United Kingdom in regard to Brexit.”
5. What the EU Parliament’s independent expert said about there being no need for a Protocol
Lars Karlsson, the author of the EU parliament’s ‘Brexit Border/Customs Report’ and the EU parliament’s chosen expert, former Director of the World Customs Organization, speaking to the Exiting The EU Committee in Mar 2018:
“There would not need to be any necessary infrastructure and not need to be either CCTV cameras or number plate readers.”
Question: “But the technology proposed in this report is untested, that’s correct isn’t it?” asked Joanna Cherry MP (SNP). “The proposal you’ve put here hasn’t actually been tested at any location anywhere in the world.”
Karlsson: “No that’s not correct. It actually has.”
The evidence I have presented above is nothing short of an international scandal.
Those who were actually responsible for cross-border trade (the EU’s justification for the N.I. Protocol) were absolutely clear to their political masters. There was NO need for a Protocol. Had they been allowed to continue to talk to each other to sort out the details, they would have done so without any drama.
To my international readers — and especially those in the United States — I would suggest two conclusions can be drawn:-
- The EU Commission deliberately confected a problem where there wasn’t one, in order to punish Brexit Britain by dividing it, and
- Leo Varadkar’s Irish government colluded with the EU Commission, in their desire to see a united Ireland — something which the majority in Northern Ireland still do not wish.
Even a significant proportion of Nationalists in Northern Ireland want to stay as part of the United Kingdom to this day.
Sources: UK Parliament | Irish parliament | EU Commission
