Windsor Framework deal can work but clarity needed, House of Lords subcommittee says

The Windsor Framework deal agreed between the UK and Europe to smooth Brexit trade issues in Northern Ireland has no “fundamental problems” and does not need to be renegotiated to make it work, the chair of a House of Lords subcommittee has said.

Lord Michael Jay, a member of the group that has scrutinised the accord for Westminster, told The Irish Times there was “nothing like enough clarity” in the text of the deal on certain issues, such as the operation of proposed green and red customs lanes and rules around importing veterinary drugs.

He said the British government needed to give businesses in the North further information on the agreement “pretty swiftly” before its provisions came into force.

“There is a massive amount of work that needs to be done. The Windsor Framework is very much a work in progress,” said Lord Jay, the chair of the upper house’s subcommittee on the protocol of Ireland/Northern Ireland, which has released a report on the business and legal implications of the Windsor deal.

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The subcommittee’s report highlights issues of concern such as the “limited scope” of the green lane proposal to fast-track the importation of goods from Britain into the North. It says that most businesses in the North, apart from large supermarkets, are likely to find their imports shunted into the much-slower customs red lanes.

The subcommittee wants the UK government to set out in greater detail how the green/red lanes would work in practice.

[ Windsor Framework will ensure NI consumers get same goods as rest of UK, says EU chief ]

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“For some businesses, the processes under the Windsor Framework will be more burdensome than under the Northern Ireland protocol [which it is due to replace],” it says.

Among other concerns raised in its report is whether Jewish and Muslim people in the North, including asylum seekers from Syria, would be able to access enough kosher and halal meat from Britain under new trade rules, which place restrictions on the importation of meat for processing.

It also highlights that buying plants and trees from Britain will effectively be banned in Northern Ireland due to restrictions on the importation of all but a handful of species, which will only be available from registered businesses such as garden centres.

The subcommittee warns that the framework could also undermine the competitiveness of businesses in the North, which might turn into a regulatory “no man’s land” if business standards diverge from those used in the European Union. However, it also acknowledges benefits for the North’s economy due to free access to both the EU and UK markets.

[ Majority in North think Windsor Framework could bring economic benefits, poll suggests ]

Speaking in advance of the publication of the report on Tuesday, Lord Jay, a former UK diplomat and now a crossbench peer, said the framework was a “distinct improvement” on the previous protocol, which was despised by unionists who said it created a border between the North and Britain.

“The subcommittee didn’t see a fundamental problem here [with the Windsor Framework],” he said. “For some businesses, there are worries and concerns. We’re not saying it requires further negotiations [with the EU] but it does require more clarification. And they need to get on with it.”

Other members of the House of Lords subcommittee included the DUP’s Nigel Dodds, former Northern Ireland secretary Peter Hain and the North’s former police ombudsman, Nuala O’Loan.