Irish Sea Border Out Of The Question For DUP

DUP leader Arlene Foster has branded the proposal of a border down the Irish Sea as an unacceptable situation that her party will not support, and added they are "not bluffing" over the issue.

Speaking at a DUP fringe event at the Conservative Party conference on Tuesday afternoon, Ms Foster emphasised that her party will not accept a Brexit deal that results in new checks on goods coming into NI from elsewhere in the UK.

She added that Northern Ireland cannot be a "semi-detached" part of the UK and said: "We are not going to allow the UK to be broken up by Brussels or anyone else."

The EU recently proposed a deal that would see Northern Ireland remain in the customs union, large parts of the single market, and the EU VAT system.

The UK government rejected this as a threat to the integrity of the UK and recommended a backstop that would allow the entirety of the UK to remain aligned with the EU customs union for a limited time after 2020.

In an earlier comment, Ms Foster said: "We cannot have either a customs border or a regulatory border down the Irish Sea. That would make us seperate from the UK."

Ms Foster is also believed to have reiterated her position to Prime Minister Theresa May.

Brexit spokesperson for the Alliance Party, Stephen Farry MLA, has said the position of the DUP is "contradictory and self-destructive".

He continued: "The need for a backstop only arises from UK Government and DUP support to leave the EU, and to rule out a softer Brexit based around a Customs Union and participation in the Single Market."

Dr Farry added that their dismissal of checks down the Irish Sea is "incoherent and dangerous."

(JG/MH)