Britain has published a bill that will overturn part of its brexit agreement with the EU. This move may not only trigger a trade war with the EU, but also expose borisjohnson, the prime minister, to strong opposition within the fragmented conservative party. The bill aims to give Britain the right to unilaterally rewrite most of the Northern Ireland protocol. This protocol enables Northern Ireland to stay in the EU single market after brexit and establish a customs border with Britain.
If the new act is passed, the British authorities will be able to tear up the regulatory framework agreed by the two sides in 2019 and replace it with new customs inspection, taxation and arbitration rules.
"This is a reasonable and realistic solution to the Northern Ireland problem," Liz truss, the British Foreign Secretary, said in a statement. "This will protect the EU single market and ensure that there is no hard border on the island of Ireland."
The EU subsequently said that it would consider bringing a new lawsuit against Britain for breach of the treaty.
MAROS sefcovic, the EU's chief negotiator for brexit, told reporters that the EU would not renegotiate the Northern Ireland protocol.
Two and a half years after brexit, the conflict between Russia and Ukraine has just brought the two sides together. The British move may make the two sides hostile again. This will also make the Johnson Administration bear the accusation of violating international law, and may deepen the division of the conservative party on European issues. Johnson just narrowly passed the confidence vote last week, but more than 40% of lawmakers still voted against him.
The following are the objectives of the act:
-Introduce green and red trade channels to distinguish goods circulating between Britain and Northern Ireland from those destined for the EU.
-Enterprises in Northern Ireland are allowed to choose whether their products comply with British standards or EU standards, or both.
-Expand the subsidy control and tax reduction measures in Britain, and expand the adjustment of value-added tax to Northern Ireland.
-Deprive the European Court of justice of jurisdiction over the disputes related to the brexit agreement in the region, and agree to an independent arbitral tribunal to supervise legal issues.