Profile picture
Kevin Hjortshøj O'Rourke @kevinhorourke
, 4 tweets, 1 min read Read on Twitter
Just a quick reminder. On the backstop, HMG has not only signed up to the December Joint Report, it also agreed in March that...
"a legally operative version of the “backstop” solution for the border between Northern Ireland and Ireland, in line with paragraph 49 of the Joint Report, should be agreed as part of the legal text of the Withdrawal Agreement, to apply unless and until another solution is found"
In line with Paragraph 49, NOT in line with Paragraphs 49 and 50.

And NOT temporary: it is to apply unless and until another solution is found.

This concession in March is too often ignored. The source is here:

ec.europa.eu/commission/sit…
So HMG has agreed to backsto, twice. At this stage the issue isn't only the backstop but HMG's credibility as a negotiating partner. You don't resile from commitments previously made in negotiations like this, or at least if you do you can expect there to be serious consequences.
Missing some Tweet in this thread?
You can try to force a refresh.

Like this thread? Get email updates or save it to PDF!

Subscribe to Kevin Hjortshøj O'Rourke
Profile picture

Get real-time email alerts when new unrolls are available from this author!

This content may be removed anytime!

Twitter may remove this content at anytime, convert it as a PDF, save and print for later use!

Try unrolling a thread yourself!

how to unroll video

1) Follow Thread Reader App on Twitter so you can easily mention us!

2) Go to a Twitter thread (series of Tweets by the same owner) and mention us with a keyword "unroll" @threadreaderapp unroll

You can practice here first or read more on our help page!

More from @kevinhorourke see all

Profile picture
@MichelBarnier , @WeyandSabine , and everyone else involved, including on the UK side, deserves huge credit for getting the process to this stage: many congratulations. Given how many red lines had to be navigated it is a massive achievement.
Attention in the UK will focus on the imperfections of the deal but those are merely the reflection of the political red lines - leave the EU, leave the SM, no customs border between NI and GB - that negotiators had to work with.
What Barnier and colleagues have achieved is to construct a pathway towards an orderly Brexit, something that has not always seemed likely. And if a future HMG changes their red lines, the future relationship could be very close indeed.
Read 4 tweets
Profile picture
@davidallengreen is of course right: if HMG reneges on the backstop it previously agreed this may well lead to a no deal Brexit, considerable economic damage to Member States including Ireland, and the very hard border the backstop was designed to avoid.
ft.com/content/0df643…
Does it follow that the EU was wrong to push the backstop? I don't think so. Avoiding a hard border was identified as one of the 3 key divorce issues and understandably so given the stakes. And HMG displayed bad faith on the issue throughout.
They clearly intended to use the Irish border issue to force the EU to accept no border controls anywhere, despite HMG being free to do trade deals with others, diverging in terms of regulations and all the rest of it. They were incredibly cynical.
Read 7 tweets
Profile picture
@pmdfoster @CER_Grant @CER_EU @anandMenon1 @DenisMacShane This is indeed what it would take for the thing to work. But if all sides agreed, which remains to be seen, it would solve the Irish border issue, rescue UK supply chains, & allow HMG to restrict free movement. It would have a lot going for it.
@pmdfoster @CER_Grant @CER_EU @anandMenon1 @DenisMacShane It would also involve a huge climbdown by the EU side. The very first statement by the 27, on 29 June 2016, stated that "Access to the Single Market requires acceptance of all four freedoms." According to @tconnellyRTE that was inserted at the insistence of Mrs Merkel.
@pmdfoster @CER_Grant @CER_EU @anandMenon1 @DenisMacShane @tconnellyRTE So while it would require the jettisoning of Mrs May's red lines there'd be a parity of political pain, since a pretty fundamental EU red line would also have been breached. I've argued for the outcome in the past but have always doubted whether it was a runner for that reason.
Read 6 tweets

Related threads

Profile picture
So where are we on Brexit? And the dreaded Irish backstop.

Some thoughts after chats with both sides. 1/Thread

telegraph.co.uk/politics/2018/…
The first thing is often in Brexit the sound of silence is the sound of deals being done.

And there is now signs of movement from the October impasse on the backstop, which I allude to this morning. /2

telegraph.co.uk/politics/2018/…
The Buzzfeed Europe Ed @AlbertoNardelli has more detail - but the key point is that Barnier appears to have offered the UK the possibility to write the all UK customs backstop into the exit treaty. /3

buzzfeed.com/albertonardell…
Read 19 tweets
Profile picture
A thread 👇 on the backstop which highlights the absurdity of the current impasse.

Plus a thought experiment which shows how the EU might accidentally give the UK a goods-only Single Market because of the backstop - precisely what they dismissed at Salzburg 🤯
1/ It’s often argued that Northern Ireland was barely discussed during the 2016 referendum. Well, we are certainly making up for that now. The backstop is 1 & only issue blocking an orderly Brexit. Unless a way through can be found, we may be at No Deal.
2/ When the EU agreed to the concept of a backstop back in December it took a risk, as a senior European Commission source confirmed to me later. It was breaking its “no cherry picking” approach.
Read 15 tweets
Profile picture
MINI-THREAD: Everything that Theresa May said today in Parliament about the backstop was deeply and deliberately misleading. Here's why. (1/5)
According to the December 2017 progress report (that both sides signed up to) there's a backstop for one reason and one reason only: both sides were committing to avoiding a hard border on the island of Ireland *whatever happened* in terms of the future relationship. 2/
However, today in Parliament our PM claimed that the principle of the backstop had been agreed for a different purpose: to bridge any time gap between the end of what she still insists on calling the 'implementation period' and legal entry into force of any new relationship. 3/
Read 5 tweets
Profile picture
As the domestic UK political debate on Brexit grapples with the 'backstop' issue, it is worth recalling key statements adopted during the negotiations to date.

These may be ignored in the domestic debate, but are essential reference points for the EU and its negotiators.

1/
UK-EU Joint Report (08.12.2017), especially:

Para 49: 'In the absence of agreed solutions, the United Kingdom will

Para 50: In the absence of agreed solutions ...

ec.europa.eu/commission/sit…

2/
Draft Withdrawal Agreement (WA) (19.03.18)

"negotiators agree that a legally operative version of the “backstop” solution for the border... in line with [para] 49 of the Joint Report, should be agreed as part of the [WA], to apply unless and until another solution is found”

3/
Read 12 tweets
Profile picture
1) theguardian.com/politics/2018/… The EU’s apparent willingness to dismiss out of hand the idea of Northern Irish Assembly having a veto on the Northern Irish backstop deserves some criticism – not a great look democratically, and contradicts with the December agreement. Thread:
2) On Friday, @theresa_may said HMG would come up with an alternative backstop, which would fulfil “the commitment that no new regulatory barriers should be created between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK, *unless the Northern Ireland executive and assembly agree.*”
3) This fits into wider signs that UK officials are willing to countenance a regulatory border in the Irish Sea (though not a customs border) – though only with Northern Irish consent. See this: politico.eu/article/theres…
Read 13 tweets
Profile picture
Recap of debate in House of Lords y'day on Amendment 25 re: Irish #border in EU Withdrawal Bill #Brexit
HoL had tabled an amendment specifying no checks & controls of any sort. Pared-back version offered by govt in compromise was passed.
Only 1 dissenting voice @PeterHain
(1/7)
Lord Duncan said govt accepted thrust of amendment but made 3 changes to ensure it's 'fit for the statute book':
- to reflect fact W'drawal Agmt =btn UK & EU not IRL
- to refer to '98 NI Act re: N/S cooperation
- tighten wording (but said still inc. range of checks/controls)
2/7
5 Lords spoke. Lord Cormack welcomed ‘real meeting of minds’ in this instance. Lord Murphy reported from BIIPA ‘unanimous agmt that Brexit is dominating British-Irish rels’
& noted ‘there is no political voice from NI in the negotiations dealing with these important issues.’
3/7
Read 7 tweets

Trending hashtags

#StateCaptureCommission #humanbeings #RecordStoreDay2019 #Report #Border #JohnBrennan #Sars #EgyptStation #45DaysOfElvisCostello #Brexit #MigrantCrisis #border #ICE #Gaza #StateCaptureInqiuiry #CustomsBill #firstchoice #NewsNight #Gupta #Saxonwold #Kennedy #ElvisCostello #Protocol #appellatetwitter #Backstop

Did Thread Reader help you today?

Support us! We are indie developers!

This site is made by just three indie developers on a laptop doing marketing, support and development! Read more about the story.

Become a Premium Member and get exclusive features!

Premium member ($30.00/year)

Too expensive? Make a small donation by buying us coffee ($5) or help with server cost ($10)

Donate via Paypal Become our Patreon

Thank you for your support!