‘Serious consequences’ for EU-UK relations if article 16 triggered - Šefcovic

European Commission vice-president Maroš Šefcovic has warned of "very serious consequences" for EU-UK relations if London triggers article 16 of the Brexit protocol on Ireland, but welcomed the recent "change in tone" from British negotiator David Frost.

Adopting a positive stance on some aspects of the talks at a meeting on Monday with the Seanad committee on Brexit, Mr Šefcovic said he hoped negotiators could “bring in agreement” on medicines issues before he meets again on Friday with Mr Frost.

On the supply of medicines into the North, he promised to do “whatever it takes to address this issue” in line with industry requirements. Negotiators were focused “like a laser beam” on the question, he added.

“We are here, ready to amend our own rules to solve this problem. Of course I would prefer to have a joint solution with the UK on this issue but we need to move quickly here.”

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Calling on Britain to reciprocate the EU’s offer last month to change how the protocol operates, he said Brussels needed to know “that there is also good faith from the other side” in the talks.

There was no question over the commitments the EU made in the talks, he said. “If we say there is 80 per cent or 50 per cent cuts in respective checks you can be pretty sure we know what we are talking about.”

Resolution

Asked by Fine Gael senator Barry Ward whether people could have faith in any resolution that might emerge, he said: “I would characterise my approach as very realistic, if our partners from the UK would engage, and I hope we will see more of it this week, then I’m absolutely sure can solve all these issues.”

Responding to Sinn Féin senator Niall Ó Donnghaile, the commission vice-president he said any triggering of article 16 would have “very serious consequences” both for the North and the EU’s relationship with the UK.

Article 16 is the last resort clause that allows either side to act unilaterally to address “serious economic, societal or environmental difficulties”. Repeated UK threats to trigger the clause have led to EU warnings of a trade war with Britain as the union could in retaliation suspend the trade and co-operation agreement (TCA) that was struck last Christmas.

Mr Šefcovic said the basis for EU engagements with Britain was a sequence of deals starting with the UK withdrawal agreement, followed by the protocol and then the TCA.

“On what would [the TCA] be based if these two founding stones would be suddenly pulled out?”

The EU’s objective in the talks was to establish a positive and stable relationship with Britain, Mr Šefcovic told the committee by video link. But he added: “I have to say that I worry about the rhetoric and action of the UK.”

After increasingly sharp signals from London that Boris Johnson’s government might trigger article 16 this week after the Cop26 climate summit, Mr Frost relented a little in recent days by saying the talks process was not at an end and that there was still time to reach agreement.

Mr Šefcovic, who met Mr Frost last Friday and will meet him again next Friday, promised to do his utmost to avoid the “dramatic development” of a trade war, adding that such an outcome would only aggravate the situation. “It would be up to us again to pick up the pieces,” he said in response to Fianna Fáil Senator Malcolm Byrne.