The ERG amendments run headlong into the June European Council conclusions on the backstop: “[the Council] recalls the commitments undertaken by the UK in this respect in Dec 2017 and March 2018, and insists on the need for intensified efforts so that the Withdrawal Agreement...
“...including its provisions on transition, can be concluded as soon as possible in order to come into effect on the date of withdrawal. It recalls that negotiations can only progress as long as all commitments undertaken so far are respected in full.”
The ERG amendment states: “It shall be unlawful for HMG to enter into arrangements under which Northern Ireland forms part of a separate customs territory to Great Britain.”
So, according to the EU, unless the UK abides by its Joint Report commitments [ie, the NI-specific backstop] negotiations cannot progress, and there will be no transition, or Withdrawal Agreement.
EU officials and the Irish govt accept that the language of the Irish Protocol can change, but not the fundamentals. Question now is, as posed by @Usherwood, will this clash be averted by the Lords?
