This article is more than 11 months old

This article is more than 11 months old

The right of one party to veto Brexit arrangements in Northern Ireland may be eliminated for the purpose of the UK’s departure from the EU, the Northern Ireland secretary has suggested.

Asked if he thought reform of the veto mechanism in Stormont, known as the “petition of concern” could address concerns over the Brexit deal, Julian Smith said: “That could be helpful.”

Concerns have been raised by the Irish taoiseach and a number of parties in Northern Ireland that the mechanism could effectively hand the Democratic Unionist party a veto on post-Brexit arrangements.

Boris Johnson’s proposals for Brexit centre on a Northern Ireland-only backstop arrangement, under which the country would stay aligned to the EU’s single market, but not its customs union, for five years.

However as part of the proposal, the Northern Ireland assembly would have to consent to the arrangement for the 14-month transition period that would follow Brexit on 31 October, and every four years thereafter. “If consent is not secured, the arrangements will lapse,” the proposal says.

The Irish government has said it cannot support a proposal that would allow any one party in Northern Ireland to make decisions for the majority.

What are the concerns over Stormont's role in proposed Brexit deal? Read more

Some were also unclear as to who would give consent for regulatory alignment with the EU if power-sharing was not restored six months before the end of the transition period.

There were some concerns that the default would be to return the power to Westminster as part of a direct rule arrangement, undermining the claim that the “Stormont lock” was a fundamental part of the proposal.

Smith suggested this was not the intention. “I am not going to go into the detail of the negotiation with the EU, but the Good Friday agreement is very clear on consent – it means one party not dominating.

“But I think there are many ways of actually achieving it, and I think we have to really ensure that the parties keep talking and we get them back in the room, that we get them back into Stormont.

“And how that resolves itself in terms of Brexit, I think, will be a matter for the coming weeks for the negotiation team.”

The government has released a seven-page explanatory note on its Brexit proposals but is facing calls to publish the full 44-page submission to Brussels to allow a wider assessment of the details.

Smith was speaking prior to talks on Friday with some of the parties in Northern Ireland amid renewed hopes that a looming 21 October deadline for social reforms on abortion and same-sex marriage laws would be met.

When asked by the BBC Question Time presenter, Fiona Bruce, on Thursday night about what would would happen if the devolved government was not restored in time for the Brexit decision, the business minister Nadhim Zahawi ducked the question.

“If they are not sitting in the next six months ... then what will happen by then we’ll have entered the negotiation for free-trade deals ... and Northern Ireland will be part of the UK in the overall free trade agreement,” he said.

Even if all parties were able to agree on a voting mechanism, separate concerns have been raised that a vote on Brexit arrangements every four years would be destabilising.

The Ulster Unionist party leader, Robin Swann, said it would only lead to more uncertainty.

“It will make every day Brexit Day in Northern Ireland, the assembly would tear itself apart,” he said.

Decisions in the Northern Ireland assembly are normally taken by simple majority, but a petition of concern was introduced after the Good Friday agreement to prevent nationalists or unionists making decisions that could be harmful for either community.