Question to the Department for Exiting the European Union :

What recent assessment he has made of the efficacy of recommendations of the Alternative Arrangements Commission on arrangements on the Irish border after the UK leaves the EU.

I welcome the report by the Alternative Arrangements Commission co-chaired by my Right Honourable Friend and I thank him for his continued engagement.

We have considered it alongside input from technical experts and businesses to inform our approach to removing the backstop and avoiding a hard border in Northern Ireland in the context of negotiations on the future agreement between the UK and the EU.