Ulster Unionist Peer, Lord Empey, has said that the Government must quickly come forward with a coherent policy on the border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland post-Brexit.
Lord Empey said:
“I challenged the Government in Parliament to clarify their proposal for the future treatment of our border with the Irish Republic after Brexit has taken place. We all share the aim of keeping an open travel area without re-installing a hard border. At the same time the referendum showed that people want more control over immigration from the European Union.
“However, the Government has not yet got any plan as to how this is to be achieved.
“This is clearly a very complex issue, given the potential for people to use the Republic of Ireland to enter the United Kingdom illegally. It is the failure to have addressed these issues before the Referendum on 23rd June that now leaves us in limbo.
“Despite repeated comments from Brexit Minister David Davis, the Secretary of State and others, there is no plan available to explain the practical outworking of having an open border while still controlling immigration, and that’s before you begin to consider the security implications.
“A gaping hole exists which has not been filled by any coherent policy. This will continue to haunt us until HMG comes up with a serious and well thought out set of proposals. I hope these begin to emerge after talks between both governments in Dublin next week.”