NI Protocol: Deal announced to remove 'any sense of border in Irish Sea'

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said the UK and EU had made a "decisive breakthrough" as he announced what he called the "new Windsor Framework".

"The United Kingdom and European Union may have had our differences in the past but we are allies, trading partners and friends, something that we have seen clearly in the past year as we join with others to support Ukraine," he said.

"This is the beginning of a new chapter in our relationship," Mr Sunak said.

"For a quarter of a century the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement has endured because at its heart it is respectful to the aspirations and identity of all communities. Today's agreement is about preserving that delicate balance and charting a new way forward for the people of Northern Ireland.

"Today's agreement delivers the smooth flow of trade within the United Kingdom. Goods destined for Northern Ireland will travel through a new green lane with a separate red lane for goods at risk of moving on to the EU.

"Food retailers like supermarkets, restaurants and wholesalers will no longer need hundreds of certificates for every lorry and we will end the situation where food made to UK rules could not be sent to and sold in Northern Ireland. This means that if food is available on supermarket shelves in Great Britain, then it will be available on supermarket shelves in Northern Ireland."

Referencing the process of sending parcels and VAT, he said: "This means we have removed any sense of a border in the Irish Sea. Second, we have protected Northern Ireland's place in the Union."

The Prime Minister told reporters that people in Northern Ireland would see the benefits of the new agreement "almost immediately".

He said: "This framework will start making a positive difference to people's lives in Northern Ireland almost immediately. And regardless of all the politics of this, I think that it's something that hopefully all of us can recognise and celebrate."

Mr Sunak added: "I also recognise that parties and communities across Northern Ireland will want to take the time to consider the detail of what we're announcing today. And we should give them the time and the space to do that. And I fully respect that."

But he insisted it was a "real breakthrough".

European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen called the deal "historic", as she praised the teams involved in the negotiations.

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