A MAJORITY of voters in Northern Ireland support the Northern Ireland Protocol in the Brexit agreement signed between the United Kingdom and the EU, with support for the measure growing, according to a new survey.
The results of the study will be embarrassing for Boris Johnson, whose ministers have introduced highly controversial legislation in the municipalities to repeal parts of the legal mechanism agreed by both sides designed to prevent a return to a hard border in Ireland.
MEPs backed the bill in a vote in the municipality on Monday night, despite the prospect of imposing trade tariffs on the UK following legal action.
Earlier this month, the EU announced that it was raising a legal challenge and reopening a previously suspended lawsuit against the UK government for non-compliance with the protocol and deciding to unilaterally suspend parts of it.
The poll results will also prove uncomfortable for the Democratic Unionist Party, which opposes the protocol and refuses to meet in Stormont in protest, meaning a new delegated executive director has not been appointed since the May elections, in which Sinn Fein became the largest party for the first time.
The Lucid Talk survey on behalf of Queen’s University in Belfast found that 55% of respondents thought the protocol was appropriate for managing the impact of Brexit on Northern Ireland – up from 47% in 2021, while 38% disagreed.
About 55% of respondents also believe that the protocol has positive economic consequences for Northern Ireland, while 65% believe that it offers unique economic opportunities that could benefit Northern Ireland.
The biggest worries are about its political consequences – 59 percent consider the protocol a negative impact on political stability and British-Irish relations. However, the share that the protocol considers to weaken Northern Ireland’s place in the United Kingdom, including the United Kingdom’s internal market, has fallen to 46 per cent, less than in previous surveys.
Respondents in the survey were asked six groups of questions about the attitude towards Brexit and the protocol.
The main findings include:
* Just over a third (36 percent) of respondents have no concerns about the full operational scope and impact of the protocol.
* The UK government has the most distrust (84 percent distrust, 55 percent strong) and the least trust of all participants. Only 5% of respondents trust the UK government.
* Voters in Northern Ireland are more likely to trust (47 percent) than distrust (43 percent) the European Commission / EU.
* A majority of respondents (57 per cent) do not believe that the UK government is justified in taking unilateral action to suspend elements of the Protocol, and 55 per cent believe that the EU would be justified in retaliating against such measures.
* A clear majority of respondents (74%) would prefer to see the UK and the EU agree on the implementation of the Protocol than for the UK to take unilateral action.
* Just over half of the respondents (52%) support the vote of the MLA for the continuation of the implementation of the Protocol.
The long-negotiated protocol keeps Northern Ireland more closely in line with EU standards and was agreed by Boris Johnson and the European Commission as a way to prevent customs checks and border infrastructure between the province and the Republic of Ireland in accordance with the Good Friday Agreement, which led to the end of trouble.
Instead, in an effort to protect the European single market, the two sides agreed to inspect goods traveling between Britain and Northern Ireland. The move was rejected by the DUP, which insists the mechanism undermines Northern Ireland’s position in the United Kingdom.
Professor David Finnemore of Queen’s School of History, Anthropology, Philosophy and Politics, who commissioned the survey, said: “This latest poll also shows support for the Protocol, which is going up and almost two-thirds of respondents see economic opportunities in it. It is also clear that voters would very much prefer that unresolved issues between the UK and the EU be resolved by agreement rather than unilateral action by the UK government.
About 1,497 voters in Northern Ireland took part in the poll, which took place from 3 to 6 June. This is the fifth in a series of surveys conducted for researchers at QUB as part of a three-year project.
During a debate in the House of Commons on Monday, Theresa May launched an irritating attack on her successor, saying “as a patriot” she could not support his legislation to remove large parts of the protocol unilaterally.
She said it was illegal under international law, would not achieve its goals and would reduce Britain’s position in the world.
Her comments to lawmakers were in response to Liz Truss, the foreign minister, who had previously told municipalities she was submitting the bill for the Northern Ireland protocol because she was a patriot. “Our number one priority is to protect peace and political stability in Northern Ireland by defending the Belfast Good Friday agreement,” Truss told lawmakers.
Labor MP David Lamy said three years ago that Johnson had told lawmakers he had secured a good deal to defend the Good Friday Agreement and that “the government is breaking into its own agreement.”
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