UK's Brexit paper opposes Irish border posts

The UK government has said it does not want any border posts between Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic in its new position paper on Brexit.

In the latest of a series of papers covering different aspects of Britain's future relationship with the EU, Brexit Secretary David Davis' department will say that it hopes to agree upfront with the EU that there will be no need for "physical infrastructure" such as new border posts, the Guardian reported on Wednesday.

The new position paper suggests a "new customs partnership" or a "highly streamlined customs arrangement".

The future status of the land border between Northern Ireland, which will leave the EU along with the rest of the UK, and the Irish Republic, which will remain a member, is one of the knotty issues the European Commission has insisted must be resolved early in negotiations.

A government source told the Guardian: "As Michel Barnier (the EU's chief Brexit negotiator) himself has said, the solution cannot be based on a precedent so we're looking forward to seeing the EU's position paper on Ireland."

Whether it will be possible to prevent any border checks at all will depend on what new customs deal the UK manages to reach with the EU as the talks progress further, the report said.

The Brexit Secretary wants a limited transition period to implement any new customs arrangements, including considerations relating to the "unique circumstances" of Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.

The position paper sets out two "broad approaches" to future customs arrangements that Britain hopes will help to prevent physical customs posts along the Irish border, BBC reported.

The suggestions are a "new customs partnership" or a "highly streamlined customs arrangement".

The partnership model would "align" customs approaches between Britain and the EU, resulting in "no customs border at all between the UK and Ireland", the paper claims.

Northern Ireland Secretary James Brokenshire said he did not accept that the EU would be unwilling to facilitate the government's proposals.

An Irish government spokesperson welcomed the position paper as "timely and helpful" as it offers more clarity on the UK's strategy.

--IANS

soni/bg