Question to the Department for International Trade:

To ask the Secretary of State for International Trade, what assessment he has made of whether not applying tariffs on goods travelling between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland in the event that the UK leaves the EU without an agreement would be compliant with World Trade Organisation rules.

The Government is confident that it is acting within its rights and obligations as a Member of the World Trade Organisation (WTO). In developing our policy for the Northern Ireland border, alongside WTO rules, we have also had to take into consideration a broader set out of international obligations.

We are confident that the unique social, political and economic circumstances in Northern Ireland justify the temporary measures that the Government is taking, based on existing exceptions under WTO rules.