Brexit latest news: Rishi Sunak says 'no deal yet' on Northern Ireland Protocol

Rishi Sunak has said "there's more work to do" on reaching a deal with the EU on Brexit's Northern Ireland Protocol, amid speculation one could be close.

The Prime Minister stressed that "we have not got a deal yet" as he vowed to continue negotiating with the European Commission "intensely".

Mr Sunak met with Stormont leaders earlier on Friday amid mounting speculation that the Government and EU are on the cusp of unveiling an agreement on the contentious Irish trading arrangements.

The Prime Minister told broadcasters in Downing Street: "Today I had positive conversations with political parties in Northern Ireland about our ongoing discussions to resolve the Northern Ireland Protocol.

"Now it's clear that we need to find solutions to the practical problems that the protocol is causing families and businesses in Northern Ireland, as well as address the democratic deficit.

"Now there's more work to do. And that's why my ministerial colleagues and I will continue talking to the European Union intensely to find solutions that protect the Belfast Good Friday Agreement and Northern Ireland's place in our single market."

Asked if he was confident he would get there, Mr Sunak said: "As I said, there's work to do. We have not got a deal yet."

The five main Stormont parties - Sinn Fein, the DUP, Alliance, the Ulster Unionists and the SDLP - were invited for individual meetings with Mr Sunak.

Following his visit to Northern Ireland, the Prime Minister is set to join European leaders in Germany this weekend for the Munich Security Conference - and the protocol is likely to feature in discussions on the margins.

In another apparent sign of progress, Foreign Secretary James Cleverly was in Brussels on Friday for a meeting with European Commission vice president Maros Sefcovic - an encounter both politicians described as "constructive".

The UK and the EU have been engaged in substantive negotiations over the workings of the protocol, which was included in the Withdrawal Agreement to ensure the free movement of goods across the Irish land border after Brexit.

The protocol instead created economic barriers on trade being shipped from Great Britain to Northern Ireland.

It has proven to be deeply unpopular with unionists, who claim it has weakened Northern Ireland's place within the UK, and the DUP has used a Stormont veto to collapse the powersharing institutions in protest at the arrangements.

04:00 PM

That is all for today...

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I will be back early on Monday morning.

03:37 PM

Irish Taoiseach: 'Window of opportunity' to agree a Brexit deal

Irish premier Leo Varadkar said "there’s a window of opportunity" in the next few weeks to reach a deal on the Northern Ireland Protocol.

He said: "When windows of opportunity disappear, sometimes they don’t reappear for quite some time.

"So I really hope that everyone in Ireland and Europe, in Britain and in Northern Ireland will seize this opportunity if it arises."

03:34 PM

Leo Varadkar 'quietly confident' of Brexit deal within two weeks

Leo Varadkar, the Irish Taoiseach, said "we’re not there yet" on a Northern Ireland Protocol deal but added that he was "quietly confident" there could be an agreement within a fortnight.

He told reporters in Limerick: "I think a lot of progress has been made. We’re not there yet, but certainly a lot of trust has been built up between the European Commission and Ireland, and the British Government.

"I do believe the prospect is there of having an agreement possibly within a week. It’s not finalised, we haven’t all seen the final text yet, but we are getting there. I’m quietly confident that within the next week or two we could be in a position to sign off on agreement between the European Union and the United Kingdom, and that would be a big boost, I think."

03:02 PM

How Rishi Sunak's Brexit deal attempts to solve the Northern Ireland Protocol deadlock

The deal to resolve issues with the Northern Ireland Protocol has been long in coming.

The post-Brexit border rules came into force in January 2021 and pretty much ever since that point there has been a row over what has been rolled out and how things could be changed.

Ministers are yet to publicly confirm what is in the final deal but we already have a pretty good idea.

My colleague Nick Gutteridge has written an explainer on what can be expected and you can find it here.

02:35 PM

Sir Keir Starmer not seeking to 'politically outbid' Government in support for Ukraine

Sir Keir Starmer said he does not want to try to "politically outbid" the Government on pledging support to Ukraine as he backed the stance taken by Rishi Sunak on fighter jets.

Speaking from Poland after a visit to Kyiv yesterday, the Labour leader told BBC Radio 2’s Jeremy Vine programme the topic of war planes came up during his conversation with Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky.

He said: "The Government has said it should be part of the conversation, so it is not ruling it out. I think they are right about that and it needs to be in lock-step with Nato.

"What I’ve been trying to do quite carefully is, I’ve said to President Zelensky and our Government that we will be united. I don’t want to try to politically outbid the Government here because if I’ve said we will be united, I mean it."

02:32 PM

Humza Yousaf giving 'serious consideration' to bid to replace Nicola Sturgeon

Humza Yousaf has become the first possible contender to succeed Nicola Sturgeon, with the current Scottish Health Secretary saying he is giving "serious consideration" to running.

Asked if he would be putting himself forward, Mr Yousaf said: "From my own perspective I am giving it serious consideration, why would you not? It is the top job in Scotland, it is a job you don’t get the opportunity to go for very often.

"On the flip side of that it can take a big toll on you personally, and on your family, and I have got to really speak to my family about whether this is the right thing for us as a collective unit.

"That discussion is ongoing and I will make my decision known in the coming days."

01:33 PM

Analysis: DUP sticking to red lines means path to palatable deal remains incredibly narrow

The fact that Sir Jeffrey Donaldson did not criticise Rishi Sunak's proposed deal to improve the Northern Ireland Protocol is good news for Downing Street.

It keeps the process of finalising the deal on the rails and allows Rishi Sunak to now focus on securing buy-in among European leaders as he travels to the Munich Security Conference.

However, the DUP leader was clear that he and his party are withholding any and all judgement on the deal until they can scrutinise a final text of the agreement.

He also signalled the DUP will not be watering down its red lines, telling reporters that "it is not a question of us compromising".

That means the path to a deal which is palatable to all the key players remains incredibly narrow.

01:19 PM

James Cleverly: 'Intensive work continues' on Brexit deal

01:03 PM

Sir Jeffrey Donaldson signals DUP will not compromise over Brexit tests

Sir Jeffrey Donaldson was asked if the DUP is willing to "compromise" in order to do a deal on improving the Northern Ireland Protocol.

He said: "Our seven tests I think reflect the previous commitments that have been given by the UK Government, both in their command paper in July 2021 and in other statements made.

"So it is not a question of us compromising, it is a question of the UK Government honouring the commitments they have made to the people of Northern Ireland, delivering on those commitments in the negotiations with the European Union and providing the basis upon which Northern Ireland's place within the UK and its internal market can be respected and protected and our institutions here can be restored on a stable basis."

12:55 PM

DUP leader: 'Progress has been made'

Sir Jeffrey Donaldson was asked if from what he had seen of Rishi Sunak's deal on the Northern Ireland Protocol if it was something the DUP could support.

He said: "I think that progress has been made across a range of issues and we welcome that. But I think there is still some areas where final agreement with the EU is still outstanding.

"We hope that that agreement can be reached and we hope that the overall text that we have not yet, we haven't seen the final text of this and we want to seethe final text of any agreement so that we can make our judgment calls."

12:53 PM

Sir Jeffrey Donaldson: Rishi Sunak must agree the 'right deal'

Sir Jeffrey Donaldson said the DUP will not be "led by a calendar" when it comes to agreeing a deal on fixing the Northern Ireland Protocol.

He told reporters: "I have indicated to the Prime Minister that it is important, fundamentally important, that he agrees the right deal. I want to hear that Brussels will stretch itself to recognise the concerns that we have as unionists and that this process will correct the wrongs of the last negotiations.

"I do not believe that anyone should be led by a calendar. What is fundamentrally and most important here is getting it right. That must be the ultimate goal. that is our goal, that is what we are committed to, getting this right and getting it done.

"And we will keep working at this until we have got to the place where we can say that an outcome meets our seven tests and enables us to move towards the restoration of the political institutions here in Northern Ireland which remains our objective."

12:48 PM

DUP leader: 'There are still some areas where further work is required'

Sir Jeffrey Donaldson, the leader of the DUP, said "we have not yet seen the final text of an agreement" on the Northern Ireland Protocol as he spoke to reporters following his meeting with Rishi Sunak.

He said that it is "safe to say that progress has been made across a range of areas but there are still some areas where further work is required".

Sir Jeffrey said if and when a final deal emerges the DUP "will want to carefully consider the detail of that agreement and decide if that agreement does in fact meet our seven tests".

12:44 PM

Rishi Sunak leaves Belfast hotel after talks with NI political parties

Rishi Sunak has now left the Culloden Hotel on the outskirts of Belfast following meetings with the Stormont parties about a prospective deal with Brussels on the Northern Ireland Protocol.

12:33 PM

Maros Sefcovic: 'Good progress' made in Brexit talks

12:31 PM

DUP meeting with PM lasts more than an hour

The DUP's leadership has been meeting with Rishi Sunak in Belfast for more than an hour now.

Each Northern Ireland political party was scheduled to have about 15 minutes with the Prime Minister.

12:20 PM

Why the DUP might reject Rishi Sunak’s Brexit deal

The DUP could support Rishi Sunak’s new Northern Ireland Protocol deal - but not for at least three months, writes The Telegraph's Europe editor James Crisp.

Facing local elections in May, the DUP have good reasons to send the Prime Minister back to the negotiating table and prolong their year-long boycott of the Northern Ireland Assembly.

You can read the full piece here.

11:59 AM

Support for Scottish independence was at 46% when Sturgeon resigned

Support for Scottish independence was at 46 per cent when Nicola Sturgeon announced her resignation, a new poll has suggested.

The poll, conducted just before Ms Sturgeon gave her resignation speech at Bute House this week, also found 48 per cent said things are going in the "wrong direction" for Scotland. That is up from 39 per cent in November.

The poll was conducted for the academic group Scottish Election Study (SES), with YouGov surveying 1,239 Scots in the five days before Ms Sturgeon’s announcement.

With "don’t knows" removed, support for a "Yes" vote in an independence referendum was at 46 per cent and "No" was on 54 per cent.

11:33 AM

All eyes on the DUP

We are now waiting for the DUP's leadership to emerge from their meeting with Rishi Sunak in Belfast.

How the party responds to the PM's deal on the Northern Ireland Protocol will have a massive bearing on how the next few days could play out.

If the party is critical of the deal or says it is not being listened to then that will be a hammer blow for Mr Sunak and could well scupper the entire plan - there would be little point in pursuing an agreement if it does not result in the restoration of powersharing at Stormont.

No10 will be hoping for warmer words which will allow the process to continue to move forward.

11:30 AM

Labour tells PM not to 'listen to the extremists in his own ranks' over Brexit deal

Labour's shadow justice secretary has told Rishi Sunak not to listen to the "extremists in his own ranks" over his Northern Ireland Protocol deal.

Steve Reed told reporters after delivering a speech in central London: "We’ll wait and see what the Government is coming forward with. It’s very important for everybody in the United Kingdom that this problem is resolved. It’s a problem that is of this Government’s own making, of course."

He added: "Labour wants this problem fixed, so we are prepared to give Rishi Sunak the additional votes he needs to get this through Parliament and it’s important that the Prime Minister works with the Labour Party rather than listen to the extremists in his own ranks who do not want to resolve this problem that has caused a division inside our United Kingdom."

11:21 AM

What are the DUP's seven tests for backing a deal on Northern Ireland Protocol?

The DUP has set seven tests which it says must be met in order for the party to back a deal on the Northern Ireland Protocol and return to powersharing at Stormont. They are:

11:05 AM

Pictured: All smiles in Brussels as James Cleverly meets Maros Sefcovic

As Rishi Sunak holds talks on the Northern Ireland Protocol with political leaders in Belfast, James Cleverly is in Brussels to meet with Maros Sefcovic, the vice president of the European Commission.

The fact that two sets of talks are taking place simultaneously adds to the feeling in Westminster that a deal is close.

10:37 AM

PM 'told UUP leader "there's a way to go yet"'

UUP leader Doug Beattie said that Rishi Sunak told him during their talks this morning that there was a way to go yet on the Northern Ireland Protocol deal.

"I will take what he said to me, he said 'there’s a way to go yet', is what he said, his words," he told reporters after the meeting in Belfast.

"That doesn’t mean that things won’t move quickly, that he did say there’s a way to go yet, so that tells me that a deal has not been finalised."

10:23 AM

Sinn Fein leader: 'Very much game on' to do deal on Northern Ireland Protocol

Mary Lou McDonald, the leader of Sinn Fein, said she believes it is "very much game on" after holding talks with Rishi Sunak over his potential deal on fixing the Northern Ireland Protocol.

Speaking to reporters in Belfast, she said she wanted to see a "speedy conclusion of matters" and "we want to see the institutions restored here in the north".

She said she believes a "deal can be done, should now be concluded speedily" and "very, very significant progress has been made".

She said: "We now want to see a speedy conclusion of matters and above all else we want to see the institutions restored, government restored here in the north. The bottom line is that we have to ensure that any deal provides for ongoing access to the European single market, no hardening of the border on the island of Ireland and a protection of the Good Friday Agreement in all of its poarts.

"Those are the core elements and aspects that need to be protected but it seems to us that it is very much game on and we are very heartened by that. We are very, very conscious that a deal can be done, should now be concluded speedily, we hope that that will be the case."

10:19 AM

Sir John Redwood criticises EU over Brexit deal

Sir John Redwood, the Tory former Cabinet minister, said the European Union needs to "stop imposing its laws and its court on Northern Ireland if it wants a deal on trade".

He tweeted this morning: "The EU needs to stop imposing its laws and its court on Northern Ireland if it wants a deal on trade. The EU has undermined the Good Friday Agreement and prevented Stormont meeting.

"Why were the Unionist parties in Northern Ireland barred from the talks with the EU and not told of possible concessions they would be expected to make?"

10:02 AM

Peter Kyle: 'NI can no longer be held back by the Tory Brexit purity cult'

Peter Kyle, Labour's shadow Northern Ireland secretary, said Northern Ireland can "no longer be held back by the Tory Brexit purity cult".

He tweeted the following this morning:

09:59 AM

SDLP leader 'fairly optimistic' Brexit deal is close

SDLP leader Colum Eastwood said Rishi Sunak had given "scant" detail on the potential deal with the EU on the Northern Ireland Protocol during their talks this morning.

Mr Eastwood said he believed that Mr Sunak was "ticking the box" of engaging with the Stormont parties.

"I think he’s very careful not to get into too much detail until the deal is done and I suppose that’s fair enough," he said.

Mr Eastwood said the Prime Minister "said the deal is not done yet" but "lots of progress has been made". Mr Eastwood said he would be "fairly optimistic that we’re very close to an agreement".

09:47 AM

Alliance Party leader: 'We are not over the line yet'

Alliance Party leader Naomi Long said Rishi Sunak is in listening mode, and that there is "some heavy lifting still to be done" to secure a deal on the Northern Ireland Protocol.

Speaking after holding talks with Mr Sunak at a hotel on the outskirts of Belfast, she said it was "a very constructive and very positive meeting".

She said: "He was very much in listening mode and keen to hear our views. It seems apparent that while he was not in a position to brief us about the details, that things are gradually moving in the direction of a potential deal.

"But we are not over the line yet. That doesn’t mean that we won’t be very soon, but there’s clearly some heavy lifting still to be done."

09:44 AM

What happens next in the SNP leadership contest?

The SNP's ruling executive met last night and decided the timetable for the race to replace Nicola Sturgeon.

The contest will last for just under six weeks, with a winner announced at the end of March.

Nominations will close on February 24 and the vote will be open between March 13-27.

No one has yet formally declared their candidacy but Deputy First Minister John Swinney and senior SNP MP Joanna Cherry have ruled out standing.

The party's special conference on independence has also been postponed. It had been scheduled for March 19.

09:25 AM

'We all know in every negotiation you don’t get everything you want'

SDLP leader Colum Eastwood said "this is an important moment for our politics here" while on his way in to talks with Rishi Sunak in Belfast.

He told reporters: "Hopefully we’re getting very close to a deal. I spoke to the Taoiseach [Leo Varadkar] last night, I don’t think this is totally done and dusted yet but it’s nearly there.

"We’re coming very close to the time where people have to decide whether or not they’re going to take 'yes' for an answer.

"I think most of the issues that the DUP have put on the table will be resolved, and we all know in every negotiation you don’t get everything you want."

09:23 AM

Pictured: Northern Ireland political leaders arrive at Belfast hotel for talks with PM

09:08 AM

Labour unable to say when 0.7% aid spending commitment would be reinstated

David Lammy was unable to say when a Labour government would reinstate a commitment to spend 0.7 per cent of gross national income on foreign aid.

The Government dropped the commitment down to 0.5 per cent because of the economic ramifications of the pandemic and has said it will return to 0.7 per cent when the financial situation allows. Labour's position is now broadly the same as the Tories.

Mr Lammy, the shadow foreign secretary, told Times Radio: "We have said that when the fiscal environment allows, we want to get back to 0.7 [per cent]."

Asked when that might be, he said: "Well, look, we're two years away from a general election, it wouldn't be right for me, or indeed, Rachel Reeves to set out the circumstances just yet. We had four budgets last year.

"But what we have said we argued for 0.7, we got there. We were disappointed that the government stepped away from that 0.7 commitment. It's always the case that Labour in office revives aid and reconnects us with the international scene. We want to do that once again."

08:52 AM

David Lammy: UK relationship with US is 'poor' because of Brexit handling

David Lammy, the shadow foreign secretary, said the UK's relations with Europe are "bad" and the relationship with the Us is "poor" because of the Government's handling of Brexit.

He told Times Radio: "Well at the moment because of the Northern Ireland Protocol Bill, and the Government's determination to tear up the treaty that it signed with the European Union just a few years ago, our relationships with Europe are bad, there's no structured dialogue, we're not able to move forward on issues like student mobility, like science, with our European colleagues.

"And also because of the undermining of the Good Friday Agreement by that Bill our relationship with Washington is poor. We need to get back into the world and reconnect with the global community."

The Northern Ireland Protocol Bill is currently making its way through the House of Lords. It would give UK ministers the power to make unilateral changes to post-Brexit border rules in Northern Ireland.

08:45 AM

Labour will 'assist' Rishi Sunak to get new Brexit deal through the Commons - David Lammy

David Lammy said Labour will "assist" Rishi Sunak to get a deal on fixing the Northern Ireland Protocol through the House of Commons.

The deal, depending on what exactly is in there, could face opposition from Tory Brexiteers and DUP MPs. But the support of the Labour Party should mean the Prime Minister would have no problem getting the deal passed.

Mr Lammy told Times Radio this morning: "It's clear that the pressure on Rishi Sunak has actually always been from a significant part of his own backbench, the ERG that have raised issues around the European Court of Justice, particularly.

"It will be interesting to see how Rishi Sunak overcomes those issues. But what we have said is that he does have Labour's support to get the changes through whatever mechanism he requires, we don't yet know whether he will tear up his bill, whether there'll be more motions for the House of Commons, but we will assist him in the coming days."

08:37 AM

Nursing union chief has not spoken to Steve Barclay for more than a month

Pat Cullen, the general secretary of the Royal College of Nursing, said this morning that she has not spoken with the Health Secretary Steve Barclay for more than a month.

Ms Cullen told BBC Breakfast there has been "no communication" during that time.

She said: "I’m deeply disappointed that I go back every moment of the day to the 320,000 nurses who took part in this ballot for strike action and say to them that I have no news for them.

"That I can’t give them any outcome so that they can get back to looking after their patients, so that they can get a decent wage and remain within the health service. It is devastating for those nurses actually."

08:30 AM

New 48-hour walkout by nurses will have 'significant impact' on NHS, says RCN chief

The Royal College of Nursing announced yesterday that its members will stage a 48-hour strike from March 1-3 as the dispute over pay and conditions escalates.

RCN general secretary Pat Cullen said this morning that the walkout will have a "significant impact" on the NHS.

She told BBC Breakfast: "We are not going to do anything that will place further risk on our patients. The risk that those patients are feeling every single day by being denied treatment because of the nurse vacancies, not being able to get off those waiting lists.

"We’re working night and day with NHS leaders, but we can also see NHS leaders stepping in and writing to the Prime Minister.

"There’s no doubt there will be a significant impact and we are now urging the Prime Minister to step in with 12 days to try and resolve this, around a round table today."

08:26 AM

Northern Ireland must be freed from EU laws and ECJ oversight - DUP MP

Sammy Wilson, a DUP MP, made clear that the party wants Northern Ireland to be completely free from EU laws and European Court of Justice oversight.

Asked if his position was no ECJ oversight in Northern Ireland at all, Mr Wilson told the BBC Radio 4 Today programme: "Well, the European Court of Justice oversight only occurs because it has to ensure that EU law applies in Northern Ireland and that it has been implemented.

"If the issue of being part of the single market rules and single market laws is removed from Northern Ireland then there is no need for the European Court of Justice."

He added: "It would ensure that Brexit actually applied to Northern Ireland, it would ensure that the UK Government has sovereignty over this part of the United Kingdom and that Northern Ireland was not separated legally from the rest of the United Kingdom as a result of the protocol. That is fundamental."

08:20 AM

DUP in 'let’s find a way through this mode'

The DUP wants to "find a way through" the current impasse over the Northern Ireland Protocol and return to powersharing arrangements at Stormont, Sammy Wilson said.

The DUP MP told the BBC: "We are very much in a let’s find a way through this mode, because we want to have the powersharing arrangements restored in Northern Ireland."

He added: "We want to be in a problem-solving mode, but the problem is not caused by us. The problem is caused by the application of the protocol... part of which we believe are unnecessary and the Government has said should be changed."

08:15 AM

DUP MP: Northern Ireland has been 'abandoned' to EU rule

Sammy Wilson, a DUP MP and the party's chief whip in Westminster, said Northern Ireland has been "abandoned" to being ruled by the European Union.

Speaking to the BBC Radio 4 Today programme, Mr Wilson said: "What we want to hear most importantly is where the negotiations have reached in removing the automatic application of EU law to Northern Ireland without any democratic input from the representatives in Northern Ireland and without any ability to change those laws if they are detrimental to Northern Ireland.

"We’ve been, quite frankly, abandoned to the EU ruling Northern Ireland through the imposition of single market rules."

08:11 AM

Tory Brexiteers issue ECJ warning to Rishi Sunak

A former Brexit minister has warned Rishi Sunak that Northern Ireland "must cease to be subject to laws made in Brussels" as the Prime Minister attempts to get a new Brexit deal over the line.

Mr Sunak is in Belfast today to hold talks with political leaders as he tries to convince them to back his deal to improve the Northern Ireland Protocol.

But he is facing Tory disquiet amid concerns the deal will not end the European Court of Justice's current role in Northern Ireland.

David Jones, now the deputy chairman of the European Research Group of Tory MPs, tweeted the following: