Northern Ireland Protocol: Rishi Sunak to meet Ursula von der Leyen for talks

Rishi Sunak is to hold face-to-face talks with the European Commission president as he tries to secure a new Brexit deal for Northern Ireland.

The PM and Ursula von der Leyen said they will meet in the UK on Monday to discuss the “complex challenges” of the Northern Ireland Protocol.

The UK wants to change the protocol, which sees some goods checked when entering from the rest of the UK.

Dominic Raab earlier said Britain and the EU were “on the cusp” of a deal.

In a joint statement, the pair said they had “agreed to continue their work in person towards shared, practical solutions for the range of complex challenges around the Protocol on Ireland and Northern Ireland”.

A deal has been expected for days, with recent talks focusing on its presentation and delivery.

The government has not confirmed if MPs would get a vote on any deal, but said they would be able to “express” their view – and both Tory and Labour MPs have been told by their respective whips to come to Parliament on Monday.

The Northern Ireland Protocol was agreed under former PM Boris Johnson as part of the process of the UK leaving the European Union.

It sees Northern Ireland continue to follow some EU laws so that goods can flow freely over the border to the Republic of Ireland without checks. (BBC)

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