Brexit talks: Foster ‘cautioned May about proceeding with this agreement’

Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) leader Arlene Foster said in a statement on Friday "We cautioned the prime minister about proceeding with this agreement in its present form given the issues which still need to be resolved".

She said “We will play a full part with the government in the second stage of negotiations on a comprehensive trade deal. Nothing is agreed until everything is agreed and how we vote on the final deal will depend on its contents. Along with like-mind colleagues across the House of Commons, we will ensure that there is no backsliding on the promises made about the integrity of the Union.

"We do, however, welcome the assurance given by the prime minister and Brexit secretary in parliament that any alignment will be done on a UK wide basis, ensuring that there would be no barriers to trade between Northern Ireland and our most important market in the rest of the UK."

The DUP said more work was needed around how any alignment could be effected without staying in the single market and customs union and what necessary alignment would be required. She also said more clarification was needed around the areas of co-operation where alignment of rules and standards would be required.

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It also raised concerns that the border agreement could pre-judge the debate within the British cabinet over what kind of concessions the country should offer in return for preferential access to the EU’s single market.

Compromise

Ms Foster has said she is pleased there will be "no red line down the Irish Sea" and is glad to have confirmation that "the entirety of the United Kingdom is leaving the European Union, leaving the single market, leaving the customs union".

Speaking on Friday morning following the news that a compromise had been made on the Irish border during the first phase of Brexit talks, Ms Foster expressed relief that an agreement had been reached regarding Northern Ireland’s inclusion in a post-Brexit UK but also called for greater clarity around any future “alignment” arrangements.

"We've been negotiating directly with the prime minister, she now has a text that she feels she wants to bring back to Europe, " Ms Foster told Sky News. "We think that there have been substantial changes made to that text. As you know on Monday we were unhappy with the text when we received it in the morning and we felt that there wasn't enough clarity, particularly around the very important issue of access to the GB market . . . "

The DUP leader said a number of matters still needed clarification and her party had hoped to resume talks over certain issues.

"There are still matters there that we would have liked to have seen clarified, we ran out of time essentially, we think that we needed to go back again and talk about those matters but the prime minister has decided to go to Brussels in relation to this text and she says she has done that in the national interest," said Ms Foster.

In a statement released on Friday morning, Ms Foster said the measures set out by the UK government in August could ensure that “there will be no hard border between Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic when we leave the European Union”.

Clarification

The DUP said the new text, agreed on early on Friday morning, confirmed there would be “no customs or trade border down the Irish Sea between Northern Ireland and the rest of the United Kingdom”.

The DUP noted that under the agreement of the text, Northern Ireland would leave the European Union along with the rest of the United Kingdom and would also leave the single market and customs union.

It said Northern Ireland would not be separated “constitutionally, politically, economically or regulatory from the rest of the United Kingdom” and that the latest UK-EU report ensured the UK would ensure “unfettered access for Northern Ireland’s businesses to the whole of the UK internal market” in all circumstances.

The DUP said there would be no “so-called ‘special status’ for Northern Ireland as demanded by Sinn Féin”.