UK to reportedly warn EU that it may override key Brexit agreement on Northern Ireland

UK to reportedly warn EU that it may override key Brexit agreement on Northern Ireland

The U.K. is expected to warn the European Union that it is willing to unilaterally override the Northern Ireland Protocol, a key tenet of the Brexit agreement, according to British media reports. The British government's Brexit minister, Lord Frost, is expected to tell Parliament on Wednesday that the agreement needs drastic changes in order to eliminate most checks on goods traveling between Great Britain and Northern Ireland. Meanwhile Brandon Lewis, secretary of state for Northern Ireland, will explain the government's proposals to members of Parliament in the House of Commons. The that the government will warn the EU that it will override the Protocol should the two parties fail to renegotiate its implementation. In a call with Irish Prime Minister Micheal Martin on Tuesday, U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson said the way the protocol is currently operating in practice is causing "significant disruption" for the people of Northern Ireland. A readout from 10 Downing Street said Johnson stressed that the EU "must show pragmatism and solutions needed to be found to address the serious challenges that have arisen with the Protocol." The Protocol was agreed in Oct. 2019 as an accompaniment to the Brexit Withdrawal Agreement and underwent further negotiation