Northern Ireland Protocol Debate

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Department: Cabinet Office

Northern Ireland Protocol

Peter Bottomley Excerpts
Monday 27th February 2023

(1 year, 2 months ago)

Commons Chamber
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Lindsay Hoyle Portrait Mr Speaker
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I call the Father of the House.

Peter Bottomley Portrait Sir Peter Bottomley (Worthing West) (Con)
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The Leader of the Opposition helpfully said that people in Northern Ireland might regard themselves as Irish, as British or as British and Irish. A large number would also describe themselves as Northern Irish. The beginning of the framework document states:

“The Northern Ireland Protocol has been the source of acute political, economic and societal difficulties”,

and the last sentence talks about the

“shared desire for a positive…relationship”.

Constituents will say that this agreement resolves some of the known problems about the protocol and some of the ones that have become obvious since then. It is about 50 years since a Unionist MP was a Minister in the UK Government. I hope that this agreement makes it possible for that to happen again.