Irritation all round at handling of move against Brexit protocol
Given that it has just announced a bill that could spark a trade war in the middle of a cost of living crisis, it is remarkable how often members of the government say that what they want is for everyone to calm down.
The intention to legislate is now formally announced but when the bill will be seen by MPs is intentionally unclear. The Northern Ireland secretary, Brandon Lewis, says it was never meant to be this week. Of course it wasn’t. Now the only commitment is “before the summer”.
Was it meant to happen like this? The original plan began with Conor Burns, with his new title of US special envoy on the Northern Ireland protocol, being dispatched to Boston and Washington to bend ears over the UK’s predicament. Burns was tasked with softening up a sceptical White House that the protocol needed to change, armed with the hefty tomes of paperwork required from traders under the new system to demonstrate how bad the situation is.
And it might have been a reasonable diplomatic mission if the Times had not spiked his guns with leaked plans for the bill that was announced by Liz Truss on Tuesday. US diplomats and key lawmakers fumed at being blindsided.
A day earlier in the US, papers were briefed on how hardline Truss was prepared to be and how her cabinet colleagues – and leadership rivals – Rishi Sunak and Michael Gove had gone soft. It was “leadership feather-fluttering”, one cabinet source said of Truss.
The leak of the plans sent shock waves through European capitals, prompting threats to cancel the UK’s trade deal, one of three weapons available to either side in the trade deal. Truss hit back in late-night briefed quotes, saying solutions proposed by the EU would make the situation worse.
All of the above might suggest a
Read more on theguardian.com
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