THE EU will launch fresh legal action against the UK after the country tore up large parts of the Northern Ireland Protocol, it has been announced.
The European Commission will also resume legal proceedings that were paused last year to facilitate post-Brexit trade.
Maroš Šefčovič, the European Commission’s vice president, accused Boris Johnson’s government of setting out to “unilaterally break international law” by scrapping parts of the controversial arrangement on the island of Ireland.
He warned the Tories were “breaking an agreement that protects peace and stability in Northern Ireland” and added: “Let there be no doubt: there is no legal nor political justification whatsoever for unilaterally changing an international agreement.
“Opening the door to unilaterally changing an international agreement is a breach of international law as well.
“So let’s call a spade a spade: this is illegal.”
The EU has accused the UK of breaching rules around live animals and animal products entering Northern Ireland from Great Britain, claiming inadequate checks are being placed on potentially hazardous goods entering the island.
Since 2021, goods sanitary and phytosanitary products entering Northern Ireland have had to comply with EU standards but the EU claimed this is not being enforced because of insufficient staff and infrastructure at ports.
The EU stands ready to act with what Šefčovič called “oven-ready” solutions already prepared.
He said Westminster was acting in a way which was “extremely damaging to mutual trust and respect between the EU and the UK”.
Šefčovič added: “It has created deep uncertainty and casts a shadow over our overall co-operation, all at a time when respect for international agreements has never been more important.
“That is why the commission has today decided to take legal action against the UK for not complying with significant parts of the protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland.”
The UK’s plans would lead to a monstrous mountain of paperwork” for businesses, he added.
The Protocol effectively creates a border between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK in order to avoid one on the island itself.
This means that goods are subject to checks and they must comply with EU standards, something which has infuriated Unionists in the province who see the measures as undermining Northern Ireland's place within the UK.
The Government published a bill earlier this week which would unilaterally tear up parts of the agreement struck just three years ago in order to appease Unionists in the region.
