Thread by @tconnellyRTE

BREAKING: the UK will be in a position to drop the offending clauses in the Internal Market + Finance Bills provided there's a "long term legal solution" to the outstanding issues around the NI Protocol, and that are "satisfactory to both sides", @rtenews has learned

2/ Acc to two well placed sources, there is a potential sequence involving the EU UK Joint Committee completing its work on the difficult issues of the Protocol which in turn will be tied to the conclusion of a Free Trade Agreement.

3/ The conclusion of an FTA wd quickly be followed by the announcement of a Joint Committee mtg, to close off the outstanding issues, some of which will "dissolve" anyway if there is an FTA

4/ I'm told that even if the UK govt reinsert the IMB clauses after it comes back from the Lords, the clauses could be removed later in the week if there is a virtuous sequence of events.

5/ I'll have more on the 9pm news on @rtenews

6/ I see a UK source is saying the clauses will go back into the IMB. Yes, that's spelt out in the story rte.ie/news/brexit/20…

7/ However, my understanding is that that is standard practice, and that if the choreography goes according to plan the clauses will taken out again. One source said, don't read too much into the clauses going back in (but don't under-read too much either)

8/ In other words, this is all highly sensitive and it all hinges on the Joint Committee getting the solutions agreed.

9/ A reminder of the contentious NI Protocol issues: how to define "goods at risk"; will exit summary declarations be needed for NI-GB traffic; what kind of presence shd EU officials have in NI; how far shd EU state aid rules reach back into GB; food consignments for supermarkets

10/ These are all technically difficult issues. However, officials on both sides have said very good progress has been made behind the scenes in recent weeks and that there are no outstanding political stand-offs

11/ For the sequence to work, some technical fixes remain to be completed, and, of course the small matter of agreeing an FTA

12/ If and when an FTA is concluded, expect a Joint Committee meeting to be called quickly. Member states have been kept abreast of the emerging solutions and they will have to agree a series of "decisions" giving legal effect to whatever emerges

13/ A source says there are two important pre-requisite. The solutions have to be satisfactory to *both* sides (EU and UK) and they have to be legally sound and long term, ie a short term grace period will not be enough

14/ There are obviously plenty of things which can go wrong, but that, at least, is the sequence. Note that @simoncoveney today was asked if the clauses went back in this week could the EU in all conscience sign an FTA with the UK?

15/ He told @thisweekrte "It will be unhelpful if they reintroduce those clauses, but the legislation won't be passed at that point. It will have to go back to the House of Lords. So it's far from done."