BREXIT BREAKING: Hard border looks inevitable as UK moves to strike deals outside EU
A HARD border now looks inevitable as soon as Britain moves to strike trade deals with countries outside the EU.
The nightmare scenario of a ‘no deal’ Brexit is looming as Taoiseach Leo Varadkar today admitted Ireland will “get into real difficulties” once the UK government changes its customs rules and regulations.
The Irish Government continues to insist it has not carried out any planning for physical infrastructure at the Border.
But there are mounting fears that while some initial leeway may be offered in the event of a no-deal Brexit, the EU and World Trade Organisation would ultimately demand checks on animals and food moving between the North and the Republic.
So far nobody in the Government has been able to explain how checks could take place without a physical border.
The European Commission has clearly stated that in the event of a disorderly Brexit “every consignment of live animals and animal products coming from the UK would have to undergo checks in border inspection posts at the point of entry to the EU”.
Ireland will be expected to protect the single market at what will be the only new EU land frontier after Brexit.
Ireland’s contingency plans for a no-deal scenario restate the Government’s commitment to maintain an open border – but give no detail on how this would be possible if the UK crashes out of the EU.
