We must do everything our power to walk our British friends back from the cliff face of a hard Brexit

“Let me be crystal clear – no one in Brussels wants a hard border,” Commissioner for agriculture Phil Hogan has said. “Certainly no one in Ireland wants a hard border. So far, London is the only place driving a hard border. Allow me to be even clearer – if London insists on leaving the customs union, this will be the road to a hard border.”

The Commissioner was speaking at a citizen’s dialogue in Kilkenny on Thursday. He welcomed the fact that the issue of the border between Ireland and the UK is one of the three main priorities of the EU negotiating position.

“This is a huge diplomatic success for Ireland. Our main issue with Brexit, namely the potential for a hard border, is now also a primary issue for the EU as a whole,” Hogan said. “This is solidarity in action. The more united the EU27 is, the higher the likelihood that we will get a good deal for Ireland, avoiding a hard border and duties on our agri-food exports to the UK.”

Realism

He called for “realism” from the British side of negotiations if current trading relations are to be maintained.

“So far, this ‘utopia’ thankfully only exists in the pages of the British Tory manifesto. We must do everything our power to walk our British friends back from the cliff face of a hard Brexit and a hard border. Remaining in the customs union would avert this ‘Made in Britain’ disaster from occurring.”

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