Louise Haigh – 2021 Comments on the Prime Minister and the Northern Ireland Protocol

The comments made by Louise Haigh, the Shadow Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, on 4 March 2021.

Northern Ireland faces real challenges as a result of the Prime Minister’s deal, but they must be addressed through political leadership.

The Prime Minister must take personal responsibility for finding lasting solutions that lower tension and make the protocol work. Unilaterally undermining his own agreement has only provoked further instability.

He should show leadership and hold urgent talks with all parties to the protocol, and Northern Ireland’s political parties, to ensure the voice of all communities is being heard loud and clear.

The Belfast/Good Friday Agreement is the basis on which communities have lived in peace for two decades. It has endured because cooperation is the only way – that must be the focus.