EU rule to apply in NI despite unionist opposition

An EU rule is to be added the Windsor Framework and apply in Northern Ireland despite unionists trying to block it with a Stormont vote.

Last year the EU rule failed to get cross-community approval at the Northern Ireland Assembly after unionists voted against it in what is known as an applicability motion.

That meant it could not automatically apply in Northern Ireland although the ultimate decision rested with the UK government.

The government has now decided the rule will be implemented as it will not create a new regulatory barrier between Great Britain and Northern Ireland.

The rule in questions deals with the protection of geographical indications (GI) for craft and industrial products.

That means legally defining and protecting certain products, which are tied to a geographical area, and is considered a useful marketing tool that can add value.

There are already GI indicator schemes for food and drink - for example, only sparkling wines from a certain area of France can be called Champagne.

The new rule is extending this to cover manufactured goods, such as Italian Murano glass.

Unionists had said it would create a new regulatory border within the United Kingdom.

However Cabinet Office Minister Nick Thomas-Symonds said that, following consultations, the government has concluded it would not.

In a written statement, he added: "The government has considered carefully the views expressed by members of the Northern Ireland Assembly last March.

"Since that point, the government has undertaken extensive assessment of the regulation, including detailed technical exchanges with the European Commission and conversations with stakeholders.

'From that work, it is clear to me that the regulation would not materially impair the free flow of goods or divert trade between Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and that it could indeed offer new opportunities."

This is the second time the government has declined to block a new EU law from applying in Northern Ireland despite unionist opposition.

Earlier this year, it refused to use the 'Stormont Brake' in relation to new EU rules on packaging and labelling of chemicals applying in Northern Ireland.

All eligible unionist assembly members backed a Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) motion to pull the brake, which is effectively a mechanism for delaying the application of new EU rules in Northern Ireland.

On that occasion the government said the tests for using the brake had not been met, as the EU rules being challenged did not reach the threshold of having a "significant impact specific to everyday life of communities in Northern Ireland in a way that is liable to persist".

Traditional Unionist Voice (TUV) leader Jim Allister said it was the "second occasion when the government has dismissed unionist concerns and ridden roughshod over their objections".

Allister added that "it is obvious that the government has calculated that it can afford to treat unionist objections with contempt".

"That attitude is understandable when unionists meekly returned to Stormont on the basis of a deal which did nothing to reverse the constitutional damage of the protocol."

Meanwhile, the UK government has decided new EU rules on the regulation of artificial intelligence will not automatically apply in Northern Ireland, despite the EU saying they should.

The government has triggered a formal process which will lead to "an exchange of views" with the EU within the next six weeks.

Thomas-Symonds said the government was clear the regulations are "complex and will require further dialogue and consideration as to their interaction with the (Windsor) Framework".

He added that politicians at Westminster and the Northern Ireland Assembly have expressed interest in these issues "in light of our domestic strategy and that they too will want to consider the issues when the government has further clarity to share on them".

Thomas-Symonds will speak to his EU counterpart Maroš Šefčovič next week at a meeting of the Joint Committee, the UK-EU body which oversees the Windsor Framework.