Good morning. Where once there was protocol, now there is protocol amended by framework. I’m talking, of course, about the announcement yesterday that the UK and the EU have agreed a deal to end the interminable dispute over post-Brexit trading arrangements in Northern Ireland.
The news was finally announced by Rishi Sunak and EU president Ursula von der Leyen in a highly choreographed, and conspicuously cheery, appearance at Windsor Guildhall – previously better known as the wedding venue for Charles and Camilla, and Elton John and David Furnish.
“We have removed the border from the Irish Sea,” Sunak said, in a House of Commons appearance later that felt like a victory lap. But there’s much more to the Windsor agreement, as it is grandly known, than that – and further to go until Brexit can truly be said to be done. As the prime minister heads to Northern Ireland this morning to sell the deal, today’s newsletter is your guide to what we know, and what we don’t. Here are the headlines.
Five big stories
Palestinian territories | Hundreds of Israeli settlers have gone on a violent rampage in the northern West Bank, setting alight dozens of cars and homes after two of their number were killed by a Palestinian gunman. One man was reported killed in what appeared to be the worst incident of settler violence in the area in decades. Read Bethan McKernan’s dispatch from Huwara, West Bank.
UK news | A missing couple that disappeared with their newborn baby in January are in police custody after being arrested in Brighton. Police said that an urgent search was now underway for Constance Marten and Mark Gordon’s child.
US media | Rupert Murdoch, the billionaire owner of Fox News, acknowledged under oath that several Fox News hosts endorsed Donald Trump’s lie that the 2020 election was stolen, court documents reveal. Murdoch made the admission during a deposition in a $1.6bn lawsuit brought by a voting machine company that accuses Fox News of defamation.
Fertility law | Children born via sperm or egg donation would not need to wait until adulthood to find out more about their biological parents, under proposed updates to the law in the UK. The information would only be shared with the consent of the donor.
Politics | Betty Boothroyd, a former Labour MP and the first female speaker of the House of Commons, has died at the age of 93.The current speaker, Lindsay Hoyle, said Boothroyd “broke that glass ceiling with panache”. See her life in pictures and obituary.
In depth: ‘Sealing the protocol deal was the easy part’
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What we do know
The outline of the changes. For a full breakdown of the key provisions, see this explainer from Lisa O’Carroll. As expected, there will be a “green lane” that almost totally eliminates checks for goods headed from the rest of the UK to Northern Ireland, and a “red lane” with more stringent checks for goods that could end up in the EU. The British government will be able to make changes to VAT and alcohol duty in Northern Ireland, and pets will exult in their newfound freedom to cross the Irish Sea. Perhaps most interestingly, while some EU law will continue to apply in Northern Ireland, there will be a “Stormont brake” on its operation.
What the “Stormont brake” is. Northern Ireland’s assembly is not currently sitting, because the Democratic Unionist party (DUP) withdrew from power sharing over the protocol. As and when it returns, the government’s framework paper (pdf) sets out that the brake allows 30 of the 90 members of the legislative assembly (MLAs) from two or more parties to raise a petition objecting to changes to EU rules operating in Northern Ireland. The UK government will then notify the EU, and the rule will be suspended unless and until both sides agree it should go back into force.
“This would give the UK an unequivocal veto,” the paper says. It also says that the brake “will not be available for trivial reasons” but only if the rule “has a ‘significant impact specific to everyday life’ that is liable to persist”.
The DUP’s 25 MLAs could not veto EU rules on their own. And because of the two-party rule, even if the DUP had more MLAs in future, they would still need the support of another party. But there are 12 other unionists in the assembly – so, while not every detail of this mechanism is clear yet, it appears to amount to a unionist veto. The hope is that this power will persuade the DUP to return to Stormont: if they don’t, they can’t use it.
Andrew Sparrow has more about how this works here. Here’s a pithier version.
UK-EU relations are better than they have been in a while. One trivial index of this was Ursula von der Leyen referring to Sunak as “dear Rishi”, not a phrase you would have heard much in Brussels about his recent predecessors. In general, EU diplomats “gave a cautious response to the Windsor framework”, having only been briefed on Monday, Jennifer Rankin reports.
Sunak had a good day. Whether through exhaustion, relief, or tactical delay, there was little immediate sign of dissent from his deal among his MPs – even the European Research Group hardliners are keeping their powder dry. The headlines this morning are largely supportive, as you can see in the front pages section below and in notably warm editorials from the Sun, the Daily Telegraph, and the Daily Mail. But, writes Pippa Crerar in her analysis, “sealing the protocol deal was the easy part … where previous Brexit deals have got into trouble was when they reached the Tory party”.
The NI protocol bill is being scrapped. Studious First Edition readers may remember that the “nuclear option” bill – which is on pause in the House of Lords – was designed to give the British government the ability to make unilateral changes to the protocol, probably in defiance of international law. The government said that there was now “no legal justification for enacting [the bill]”.
MPs will have a vote on the framework, eventually. Sunak said that “parliament will have a vote at the appropriate time and that vote will be respected”. But he signalled that that could take some time.
Some Brexit sceptics say the deal just demonstrates how flawed the underlying project is. “Let no one imagine that Monday’s choreographed signing, grip-and-grins, nor even the king’s gracious blessing, will undo the monumental self-harm of Brexit,” writes Polly Toynbee. Others suggested that the excruciatingly-won benefits for Northern Ireland are … quite similar to the position the whole of the UK was in as part of the EU.
Thérèse Coffey has pivoted from British turnips to British sausages, which the government is curiously obsessed with reminding us will now be available in Northern Irish supermarkets. At root, she thinks the deal’s a banger. She is not alone.
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What we don’t know
What the DUP will do. The main unionist party’s leader, Sir Jeffrey Donaldson, welcomed “significant progress” but said the DUP would take time to study the detail before announcing whether they would return to power-sharing – one of the key goals of the negotiated changes. Some in his party were highly critical, such as Ian Paisley, who said it did not “cut the mustard”. Rory Carroll writes that Donaldson “may try to sell the deal as a victory” but that “the risk is that rebels in his party, and unionist rivals outside it, will destabilise his leadership”.
What Boris Johnson will do. There was some hilarity in the House of Commons last night when Sunak thanked his predecessors “for laying the groundwork for today’s agreement”. Last week, Johnson said that his NI protocol legislation should not be ditched and refused to back a new deal. His opposition would be very dramatic, but not necessarily decisive: even his allies in Westminster may be more interested in what the DUP think. PoliticsHome reports that he has urged the DUP to be “cautious” about any endorsement. While Johnson did not comment publicly yesterday, Aubrey Allegretti reports that he is still “dangling the threat of a rebellion over Rishi Sunak”.
How that UK parliamentary vote will go when it happens. Any vote would not be binding on the government’s ability to proceed, and in any case the backing of opposition parties means that success would be assured regardless of what Conservative backbenchers do. But a Tory rebellion, coupled with opposition from the DUP, would still be very tough politics for Sunak. Aubrey Allegretti has more on the Brexit hardliners’ response, and says that Tory strategists believe that any rebellion will be small – “but even a dozen Conservative MPs opposing the deal could trigger bigger problems for Sunak further down the line”.
If the rebellion is small, sheer weariness may be a factor. This extraordinary Newsnight interview with Northern Ireland minister and former ERG leading light Steve Baker, who now backs the “fantastic” deal, gives a sense of what the last seven years have cost at least one of the leading protagonists.
What the King thought of it all. One sideshow of the last few days has been plans for a role for King Charles in the choreography of the agreement yesterday. In the end, to the outrage of the DUP and Tory Brexiters – who criticised Sunak for dragging the monarch into a highly political moment – he met with Ursula von der Leyen (above) at Windsor Castle. Jessica Elgot has more.
How it will change life in Northern Ireland. Beyond Stormont, the fundamental question about the deal is what difference it will make to Northern Ireland’s prosperity, the stability of the Good Friday agreement, and the security of the region – impossible to know for sure until the framework is up and running. Richard Partington hears from NI businesses, who largely welcome the news.
What makes this a framework whereas the last thing was a protocol. I could probably find this out, but I choose not to.
What else we’ve been reading
I loved this interview by Rachael Sigee, who spoke to actor Indira Varma (above) about her impressive, multifaceted career, and ageing in an industry that “places ruthless expiration dates on women”. Nimo
The supermarket chain Morrisons was founded on thrift and good value. Sarah Butler has a fascinating read on how a £7bn private equity takeover has led to asset-stripping, sinking profits, and serious questions over where it goes from here. Archie
In the Big Idea this week, Peter Frankopan explains how learning about the climate brings historians insights about the past. Nimo
In case you were wondering what the fuss is about, here are some extremely nice pictures of the northern lights, as seen across the UK on Sunday. Stonehenge has to be the winner. Archie
Nathan Heller’s New Yorker deep dive (£) into declining rates of enrolment in humanities courses is a fascinating look into the changing role of higher education in the US and around the world. Nimo
Sport
Cricket | England lost to New Zealand (above) by just one run in one of the most dramatic test match finales of all time. The nailbiting result, ending a run of six straight victories for England and making New Zealand only the fourth side in history to win a test after following on, means that the sides draw the two-match series. A near-delirious over-by-over report by James Wallace and Tanya Aldred captures the tension of the final stages.
Football | England’s march to the Euro 2022 title has led to Sarina Wiegman being named best women’s coach at the Best Fifa awards in Paris. A key member of that team, Mary Earps, was also named best women’s goalkeeper at Monday night’s ceremony. Barcelona’s Alexia Putellas was named best women’s player for the second year in succession.
Tennis | The Lawn Tennis Association believes it faces an “existential threat” if the ban on Russian and Belarusian players continues and it is stripped of its prestigious pre-Wimbledon events such as Queen’s Club and Edgbaston by the sport’s governing bodies. Talks between the LTA and the government continue, with a decision expected by early April.
The front pages
We have a separate front pages rundown on the Northern Ireland deal today including some island of Ireland editions. Our usual summary follows …
“PM hails ‘new chapter’ in relations with EU after Northern Ireland deal” says the Guardian’s front page this morning. The Times is more terse: “Brexit breakthrough”, while the Telegraph says “Sunak: My deal is a new way forward”. “Has Rishi done the impossible?” asks the Daily Mail, and the i has “Sunak secures breakthrough on Brexit – as tensions loom”. “You can put the oven on” – the Metro takes a jab at Boris Johnson there. The Daily Express says “PM: my Brexit deal ‘now takes back control’”. The Financial Times takes a broader view: “Northern Ireland trade deal eases post-Brexit tensions with Brussels”.
All that is just a puff box in the Sun – “PM’s historic N Ireland deal” – while the splash is “Broadchurch star dumps Downton star for Better co-star”. The Daily Mirror has “Ripper secret revealed – Evil’s End” – that’s the story that the Yorkshire Ripper’s ashes were scattered at a seaside “beauty spot”, according to a niece.
Today in Focus
Is the Northern Ireland protocol deal a much-needed win for Rishi Sunak?
The protocol led to the collapse of power sharing in Northern Ireland’s assembly – and empty supermarket shelves. So will the prime minister’s Windsor framework solve everything?
Cartoon of the day | Steve Bell
The Upside
A bit of good news to remind you that the world’s not all bad
In many countries across Africa, shifting consumption and lifestyle patterns have meant that meat and dairy have gone from rare luxuries to everyday staples. Vegan chefs, however, have said that this change is not good for the planet, for animals or for people’s health and finances. One of those chefs is Nicola Kagoro, who returned to Zimbabwe after a five-year stint as executive chef at one of Cape Town’s premier vegan restaurants. She quickly found that there was no appetite for her food, as meat had become such a fundamental part of most people’s diets.
Seven years on, Kagoro and others have made it their mission to reawaken and remind people of the vegan roots in the cooking of many cultures across the continent. Kagoro now fronts a cookery slot on Zimbabwean television, and is launching a takeaway service next month. “I think there are more African vegans coming out of the closet now,” she says. “They just didn’t speak about it before.”
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