Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask Her Majesty's Government what assessment they have made of the impact of the negotiating position and approach of the EU on the political stability of the power-sharing institutions in Northern Ireland.

The UK Government is still in discussions with the EU regarding the operation of the Northern Ireland Protocol. So far we have not seen the flexibility necessary to address the issues we are seeing. The situation in Northern Ireland is serious: there is no longer a fully functioning devolved government.

We remain fully committed to fixing the problems with the Protocol and to protect the Belfast (Good Friday) Agreement in all its dimensions. We need to make progress urgently to provide a platform for a stable, effective power-sharing Executive after the May elections.