Backstop is Ireland’s Insurance policy and must be permanent – Cullinane

Sinn Féin Brexit Spokesperson David Cullinane TD has dismissed the suggestion from British Brexit Secretary Dominic Rabb that the Brexit Backstop arrangement for Ireland can be temporary or time limited. He said the British Government need to wake up and realise that Ireland needs a permanent solution and one that avoids any hardening of the border.

Speaking this morning, Deputy Cullinane said:

“It is worrying that, at the eleventh hour in the Brexit negotiations, the British Government are still holding out on a Brexit solution for Ireland. Any proposal by the British Government to make the Backstop for Ireland temporary must be resisted and faced down. Ireland needs certainty and not more false promises from a divided Tory party.

“The Backstop was designed to be an insurance policy for the North of Ireland and the entire Island. In essence, it is to ensure that whatever happens in any talks to secure a future trading relationship between Britain and the EU that the North will stay closely aligned to the rules of the Customs Union and Single Market. There can be no acceptable fudge to this red line.

“The people of the North voted to remain in the EU. Brexit is incompatible with the Good Friday Agreement and as such we need a unique solution for Ireland. Any solution must avoid a hardening of the Border, protect the GFA in all its parts, and protect citizens’ rights. This is the yardstick Sinn Féin will use to measure progress.

“The will of the people of the North must be respected. The Good Friday Agreement must be protected. And EU citizens on the Island of Ireland must have their rights upheld. The backstop or insurance policy for Ireland is the bare minimum needed to protect Ireland. A backstop which is temporary ceases to be a backstop. The British Government needs to get real and realise that any fudge for Ireland will not be accepted.”