Ulster Unionist MEP Jim Nicholson has cautioned against repeating the mistakes of the December backstop agreement. Mr Nicholson warned that concerns with the draft Withdrawal Agreement - which would be a legally binding treaty - cannot be addressed by vague non-binding political commitments.
Jim Nicholson MEP said:
“In December, when the Government and the DUP agreed to the EU’s backstop, we were assured it would be fine, because text had been included stating there would be no regulatory divergence between Great Britain and Northern Ireland. In reality however, it was a fudge with no legal standing, and now the Government appears to have conceded the point.
“I would caution MPs from making the same mistake with the political declaration agreed today. Ultimately, nothing included in those pages is legally enforceable, nor is any verbal or written assurance from the Prime Minister - whereas the Withdrawal Agreement will be legally binding.
“The future trading relationship that the political declaration maps out is of course the bigger picture and I of course welcome the fact that both sides have stated their ambition for a deep and comprehensive deal.
“But we cannot allow it to camouflage the grave concerns pro-Union people across the United Kingdom have about the Withdrawal Agreement. The problems in that draft legal text cannot be solved by political commitments that don’t have a sound legal basis. The Government must not repeat the mistakes of the December fudge.”