A government minister said “nothing is on the table” during talks to address concerns over the Northern Ireland Protocol.
University Minister Michel Donelan spoke before Northern Ireland Secretary Brandon Lewis, who called on all political parties to form an executive branch as soon as possible after Sinn Féin’s historic election victory.
Mr Lewis will meet with leaders of the five major political parties in Stormont, including Sinn Fein and the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) on Monday, as concerns about the protocol grow in the government.
The protocol regulates trade between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland after Brexit.
On Saturday, Sinn Fein, the former political wing of the IRA, became the first nationalist party to win the most seats in the Northern Ireland Assembly in its 101-year history.
Ms. Donelan told Sky’s Kay Burley: “Our priority is to tackle the priority. We owe it to the people of Northern Ireland. They are a major part of the United Kingdom.
“The Northern Ireland Protocol is not working and I believe that concerns about this have been reflected in the recent results we saw in the election. We are working at a pace to resolve this. Nothing is out of the table.”
“We will not be ashamed to take further steps”
Ahead of today’s meeting, Mr Lewis said the people of Northern Ireland deserved a “stable and accountable decentralized government”.
“We have to deal with the outstanding issues of the Protocol on Northern Ireland, and we want to do that with an agreement with the EU, but as we have always made clear, we will not be ashamed to take further steps if necessary,” he said. .
Michelle O’Neill, Sinn Fein’s vice president, will now become the country’s first first nationalist minister.
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00:56 Protocol on Northern Ireland must be ‘fixed’
Correction Protocol “cannot be postponed”
According to the Northern Ireland model of power-sharing, the executive must have representatives of both the nationalist parties that want Irish unity – Sinn Féin – and the unionists, who want Northern Ireland to remain part of the United Kingdom – DUP.
The DUP has said it will not run for government by sharing power with Sinn Fein unless progress is made on the protocol.
Speaking after Sinn Fein’s victory, Deputy Prime Minister Dominique Raab said the election results clearly showed that the amendment of the Northern Ireland Protocol “cannot be postponed”.
Some fear that progress in power-sharing will remain stagnant after last Thursday’s election.
Mr Raab said: “It is clear now: if there is anything, the result in Northern Ireland of this election clearly shows that it cannot be postponed.”
He added that stability was “threatened” by problems with the protocol governing Northern Ireland’s post-Brexit trade agreements.
Read more: What is the Northern Ireland Protocol and why does it matter? Who is Sinn Fein’s deputy leader, Michelle O’Neill? What is power sharing and why does Northern Ireland use it?
The United Kingdom and the EU have agreed to introduce the post-Brexit protocol to avoid the introduction of a hard border between Ireland and Northern Ireland.
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2:47 Reaction to Sinn Fein’s victory
Previously the largest party in Stormont, the DUP resigned as prime minister in February in protest of the Northern Ireland Protocol.
Due to power-sharing rules, the move forced Ms. O’Neill to step down as well.
Following Monday’s meeting, Mr Lewis will also speak with Irish Foreign Minister Simon Cowney to discuss the election results and the importance of forming a fully functioning executive branch as soon as possible.
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