A meeting between Leo Varadkar and Theresa May at the margins of an EU summit in Sofia yesterday has raised hopes that a solution could be found for the Irish border after Brexit.

It is understood that the British prime minister gave the taoiseach the broad outline of a plan that would involve the UK remaining aligned to the customs union in areas deemed necessary to preserve the integrity of the Good Friday agreement.

Mr Varadkar urged Mrs May to submit the proposal formally to the EU’s Brexit taskforce so it can be considered before the European Council summit at the end of June. The plan would include keeping the entire UK aligned with EU tariff rates for a limited period after the Brexit transition