PSNI will refuse to police customs checkpoints after Brexit

The PSNI will not police customs checkpoints.

Chief Constable of the Police Service of Northern Ireland Simon Byrne has said that the PSNI will refuse to police customs checkpoints regardless of how Brexit pans out.

As things stand, no-deal will result in a hard border across the island of Ireland, which would necessitate customs checks at hundreds of crossings, as the UK leaves the customs union and single market.

Boris Johnson's current proposal also involves custom checks, though they would be at a remove from the border itself by as much as 10km.

In a call with Johnson, Byrne said the organisation had "no plans to put police officers on any one of 300 crossings."

According to the BBC, Byrne further said that the PSNI would not "be dragged into another type of policing." He also confirmed that the organisation has sought legal advice on what they can be asked to do.

Johnson contends that his proposals would result in minimal physical checks, though this hasn't been enough to satisfy the Irish government or the European Union.