Maros Sefcovic gives a press conference at the EU headquarters in Brussels on June 15
(Picture: AFP via Getty Images)European chiefs have stepped up the war of words with the UK over Brexit, branding Britain’s move to rewrite the Northern Ireland Protocol as “illegal”.
Announcing the EU’s official response to the UK’s new Northern Ireland Bill, published on Monday, the European Commission vice-president Maros Sefcovic said the legislation had damaged trust and “cast a shadow” over UK-EU co-operation.
“Let there be no doubt; there is no legal or political justification for unilaterally changing an international agreement,” Mr Sefcovic told a press conference in Brussels on Wednesday morning.
“Let’s call a spade a spade — this is illegal.” Mr Sefcovic said the move by Boris Johnson’s government to change the Protocol had left Brussels with no choice but to launch fresh legal action.
He announced that the EU would be launching a three-pronged legal response. Firstly the commission would re-start earlier legal action taken when Britain unilaterally extended a grace period on checks on agrifood products travelling between Britain and Northern Ireland last year.
In addition Mr Sefcovic said the commission would start two new infringement proceedings against the UK for failing to carry out “proper” border checks in Northern Ireland and for failing to provide statistical data.
If found to have breached the terms of the Protocol then the UK could face fines. But the Commission stopped short of saying it would impose new punitive tariffs on UK trade into the EU.
The UK’s move to rewrite the Protocol — part of the 2019 Brexit Withdrawal Agreement which avoids a hard border on the island of Ireland by setting up customs checks on some goods going from Great Britain to Northern Ireland — has sparked fresh tensions with the EU.
Although the new Bill could take up to a year to pass into law because of opposition in both the Commons and the Lords, it proposes unilaterally removing customs checks and physical checks on goods which are only going to Northern Ireland and not into the Republic of Ireland.
Instead goods from Great Britain destined to remain in Northern Ireland will go through a “green lane” with no checks while those being moved on to the EU single market in the Republic will go through a red lane and face checks.
The Bill also looks to limit the judicial oversight of the European Court of Justice and end EU control over state aid and VAT.
Ministers insist the legislation is lawful under the “doctrine of necessity”, allowing it to breach international obligations in exceptional circumstances.
But many Conservative and opposition MPs are concerned that the Bill will damage the UK’s international standing.
