Sign up for our weekly Beyond Brexit newsletter, follow us @Brexit and subscribe to our podcast.
The European Union is set to postpone legal action against the United Kingdom for violating the Brexit agreement in Northern Ireland, according to two people familiar with the matter, as riots erupt in the province.
The EU has begun proceedings last month after the UK unilaterally extended the waiver of checks on goods entering Northern Ireland from the UK. The temporary exemption was part of a trade agreement designed to keep the Irish border free of checkpoints after Britain left the bloc.
According to the people, who asked not to be identified because the deliberations are ongoing, the EU looked forward to moving forward on April 15, but stops while working on a joint plan with Britain to defuse the problems. The European Commission declined to comment.
Why Brexit continues to fuel Irish borders: QuickTake
These considerations arise when tensions erupt in Northern Ireland, with pro-British loyalists protesting against the Brexit deal, which they say risks threatening to remove them from the continent at the EU’s request. The worst riots in recent years have injured more than 70 police officers and a hard line the EU’s approach risks further igniting the situation.
The Commission has asked the United Kingdom to provide a credible document Roadmap for the implementation of the agreement, but the two people said that the proposals are not satisfactory. However, the EU has decided to work with the UK on a common plan and put legal action on the ice in the meantime, people added.
The delay is gaining time to resolve the difficulties, according to one of the people, the bloc being determined not to deepen divisions with Britain at a particularly sensitive time.
Under the agreement negotiated by British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, Northern Ireland has effectively remained in the EU’s customs union and much of the single market. This avoided the need for border controls on the island of Ireland, but introduced them for the first time on goods entering the province of Great Britain, leading to delays and disruptions.
The UK has temporarily exempted some goods from inspections for a period of time, but last month extended the grace period further without notice.