Northern Ireland Protocol
The Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland, commonly abbreviated to the Northern Ireland Protocol, is a protocol to the Brexit withdrawal agreement that sets out Northern Ireland’s post-Brexit relationship with both the EU and Great Britain. The Withdrawal Agreement, including the Protocol, came into effect on 1 January 2021. Citing the island of Ireland's "unique circumstances," the Protocol governs unique arrangements on the island between the United Kingdom and the European Union; it regulates some aspects of trade in goods between Northern Ireland and the rest of the United Kingdom.
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Withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union Glossary of terms |
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The Protocol's arrangements, under which Northern Ireland but not the rest of the UK remains in the EU single market for goods, allow the maintenance of the open border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. The establishment of the open border was a key aspect of the Northern Ireland Peace Process and Good Friday Agreement which ended the Northern Ireland Conflict. The Protocol instead creates a de facto customs border in the Irish Sea between Northern Ireland and Great Britain.
Principally to address concerns of Ulster Unionists about the Protocol, in 2022-23 the EU and UK agreed revised arrangements for its operation – the Windsor Framework – which took effect on 24 March 2023. The Democratic Unionist Party declined to accept the Framework as meeting their concerns until further adjustments to its operation were agreed on 31 January 2024 and the formation of a new Northern Ireland Executive began.