NI protocol talks ‘inching towards a conclusion’ this weekend, says Varadkar

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has confirmed that talks on reforming the Northern Ireland protocol are “inching towards a conclusion” this weekend.

The Daily Telegraph is among British media outlets reporting that the UK has secured major concessions from the European Commission which it can sell to a sceptical Conservative party and to the unionist parties in Northern Ireland.

British prime minister Rishi Sunak spoke to President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen, on Friday night and they are due to speak further on Saturday.

The Telegraph said a deal may be agreed as early as Sunday with a legal text presented to the House of Commons on Monday.

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Similarly, The Times is reporting that Mr Sunak intends to publish the draft agreement with or without the explicit endorsement of the Democratic Unionist Party and he will also face down the European Research Group (ECG).

Speaking in Galway on Saturday, Mr Varadkar cautioned that “we are not there yet” but the signs are encouraging in relation to the protocol.

“I would encourage everyone to go the extra mile to come to an agreement because the benefits are huge. It will allow us to have the Northern Ireland Assembly and Executive back up and running in the North, to the Good Friday Agreement working properly again and also to put relations between the UK and Ireland and the EU on a much more positive footing” he said.

Asked if there was going to be an announcement very soon, he said, “there can’t be an announcement until we know for sure that the agreement is made. We are inching towards a conclusion. We’re not quite there yet but there is ongoing engagement involving the UK government, involving the European Commission and of course the Irish government is plugged into that, and the Northern Ireland parties.

“I don’t want to prejudice anything at this stage ... but I think it’s fair to say we are inching towards a conclusion and there is the possibility of agreement within the next few days, but by no means guaranteed. There is still a gap to be closed.”

Mr Varadkar also spoke about the problems the State is having in accommodating refugees.

He said the situation had gone “beyond the tipping point” as the State has had to refuse accommodation to hundreds of people arriving into Ireland seeking international protection.

“This is an enormous challenge. More than 100,000 people have come to our country in the last year. We need to accommodate them. Nobody wants to see people on the streets,” he said.

“We are pulling out all the stops to do so, whether it is using barracks or caravans. A huge amount of work is under way at Cabinet subcommittee level and we are looking to modular units on government land, but also refurbishing some of the old buildings that we cannot pressed the button on a year ago. This might be well before they are ready, but we will use them.”

He also confirmed that the cost of living supports will remain though inflation is likely to be significantly less than forecast at between 4 and 5 per cent.

He said it would be “unacceptable” for energy companies not to reduce their prices this year given the fall in the wholesale price of gas. - Additional reporting by Dara Bradley