The UK and EU have reached an agreement on customs that could signal a step towards a breakthrough in the dispute over the post-Brexit Northern Ireland Protocol, it has been reported. According to The Times, the EU has accepted a plan that would avoid routine checks on goods going into Northern Ireland. For the first time, it recognised that the ECJ could rule on Northern Ireland issues only if a case was referred by courts there, the newspaper said. “Any solution on the Protocol must address the range of issues on the ground in Northern Ireland. Many unionists in Northern Ireland are vehemently opposed to arrangements they claim have weakened the region’s place within the union.

Source: The Times February 01, 2023 00:34 UTC