UK may be using NI protocol as leverage for finance concessions, says Bertie Ahern

The UK government may be using the unresolved Northern Ireland protocol issue to gain leverage in negotiations on other post-Brexit problems, Bertie Ahern has suggested.

The former taoiseach, speaking at the Daniel O’Connell School in Cahersiveen, Co Kerry, this week, questioned whether the Conservative government is genuinely committed to resolving the impasse.

Mr Ahern said that it was notable that it was exactly a year since the British government had its “last meaningful meeting” with the EU negotiating team under Maroš Šefčovič.

“It’s exactly a year since they had the last meaningful meeting between the EU and the UK – it was just before Halloween last year,” he said. “They had no meeting after that except a Friday afternoon in February where they growled at each other and nothing has happened since.”

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Mr Ahern laid the blame for the lack of progress squarely at the door of the British government, saying that political turmoil in Westminster does not excuse the failure to engage.

“Shame on the British government for the way they have handled this, and I know they have had three prime ministers and three secretaries of state this year – it’s musical chairs. Well, that might be great fun for people in Westminster but it’s individuals in the North who are getting the brunt,” he said.

Speaking to Irish Times columnist Stephen Collins, Mr Ahern highlighted issues including financial concessions and state aid rules that the British government wants to resolve alongside Northern Ireland’s situation.

“The guilty ones in my eyes are number one, the British government, because they left a year go by, and number two, the DUP, because they are using [the refusal to restore the Stormont Assembly] as a kind of blackmail to get what they want,” he said.

“I have a sneaking, sneaking feeling – and remember, we are dealing with Brexiteers here and the Secretary of State (Chris Heaton-Harris) is a Brexiteer – they [are] using this to gain leverage with the EU on other issues.

“I hope I’m wrong but as time goes on, you suspect because there is a whole agenda that the British government needs from Europe – they want to tie up finance, insurance, state aids, a whole load of issues, things that have to be dealt with but have nothing to do with Northern Ireland.”

In contrast, Mr Ahern praised EU chief negotiator, Maroš Šefčovič, whom he said had met business leaders in Northern Ireland, understood their concerns about the impact of the protocol, though he warned Mr Šefčovič could only go so far to meet their demands.

“Does he get it? Yes, he does. Has he shown flexibility? Yes, he has. Is he prepared to make compromises – yes, but there will be some things he will not compromise on – he will not compromise on EU standards and will say that any checks will have to be to EU standards,” he said.

Mr Ahern said that the underlying problem was that Brexit was a huge mistake by Boris Johnson’s government, but the Conservatives were unlikely to admit that it was a mistake, irrespective of the cost to the people of Northern Ireland and the UK generally.

He said that while he felt the EU might have made more concessions to then prime minister David Cameron in 2016, it now appeared that the Labour Party under Keir Starmer was wedded to the idea of Brexit so he couldn’t see any reversal even if the government changed.

However, Mr Ahern said he did have some slight hope that a Labour government might explore the UK joining the EU Customs Union, the departure from which was an idea introduced by Theresa May after Brexit had already been voted through.