Welcoming the announcement of an extension to grace periods for chilled meats under the Irish Protocol, The Left in the European Parliament again condemns London’s refusal to honour commitments under international law.

MEP Chris MacManus (Sinn Féin, Ireland), member of the “UK Contact Group” of the European Parliament said:

“I welcome the calm response of the EU in accepting the extension of the grace period on chilled meats, announced by Commission Vice President Maroš Šefčovič this afternoon.

“The British government attempt to renegotiate the Protocol is doing more damage than would have been done by its timely implementation. It has encouraged DUP* ministers to refuse to operate it in a way that could mitigate the worst effects of Brexit to the economy in the North and all-Ireland economy, particularly in border areas.

“We all know that this British government has a very casual relationship with honesty and with its commitments under international law. We see how it is a struggle to get them to fully implement the Good Friday Agreement and subsequent agreements. They should come clean and admit to what they signed up to in the Protocol rather than wasting time trying to renegotiate the compromise that 27 EU member states also signed up to.

“If the British government don’t make an SPS** agreement with the EU then we know that all their fine words about food standards and animal welfare are meaningless and that their real intent is to allow substandard products to enter the EU market through the north of Ireland.”

* Far-right party in the north of Ireland

** Sanitary and Phytosanitary Measures