Ulster Unionist leader Robin Swann MLA has rejected comments by Taoiseach Leo Varadkar who stated that special status is on the table for Northern Ireland.

Mr Swann said:

“Has the Taoiseach given the game away about the Republic of Ireland`s true intentions when it was reported yesterday that he said that special status is on the table for Northern Ireland during the Brexit negotiations? Despite numerous meetings with his government, despite the principle of consent being embedded at the heart of the Belfast Agreement and despite my colleagues and I cautioning them to be mindful of the rhetoric they use, it is clear that the Irish Government see these Brexit negotiations as an opportunity to attempt to weaken or change Northern Ireland`s current status as an integral part of the United Kingdom. His comments will be interpreted by unionists as an attack on the sovereignty of Northern Ireland.

“Let me be very clear, if that`s the direction which he and his government are heading in, it won`t do much for relationships on these islands. This sort of intransigent language which pays scant regard to the Belfast Agreement and the principle of consent certainly won`t help reach a sensible Brexit agreement. Instead of winding the situation up, both he and Simon Coveney should let the negotiators get on with it without the interruption of sound bites from the Taoiseach and his Foreign Affairs Minister. They need to be careful, that whilst they may be playing to a nationalist gallery, that they don`t throw the baby out with the bathwater. If we don`t get a sensible deal, which respects the Belfast Agreement and the principle of consent, it`s not only Northern Ireland which will suffer. The Republic of Ireland`s economy will also be on the receiving end of a chill wind.

“It is unfortunate that the type of comments currently emanating from the Dublin government give encouragement to Sinn Fein wreckers who seem intent on exploiting uncertainty over Brexit to further destabilise relationships within Northern Ireland. The temperature needs to be lowered in the days ahead with a change in tone and language. And the same applies to the DUP. Arlene Foster can`t call for ‘cool heads in a febrile atmosphere’ on one hand whilst her colleagues are running about threatening ‘guerilla war’ and the DUP Brexit spokesperson, Sammy Wilson MP, is saying that the Irish border has been ‘dreamt up as a problem’ by Dublin and Brussels. Instead it`s time to get down to business.”