US politicians urged to block any UK trade agreement unless Irish border deal stays in place
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US politicians urged to block any UK trade agreement unless Irish border deal stays in place

A CAMPAIGN group is lobbying US politicians to block any potential new trade deal with the UK in the event that Boris Johnson reneges on the terms of the EU Withdrawal Agreement. 

The Border Communities Against Brexit group is also calling on the Taoiseach to call for the cancellation of this week’s planned talks between representatives from the UK and EU until new legislation being proposed by the UK government is taken off the table. 

The UK government is reportedly readying a new section of the internal market bill, designed to override parts of the withdrawal agreement signed back in January.  

If correct, it could impact the legally binding special arrangements in place for Northern Ireland, specifically overriding parts of the Northern Ireland Protocol agreed last year, in a move that could pave the way for a return to a hard border.  

The Border Communities Against Brexit group has branded the idea an international treaty could be deliberately torn up “utterly unacceptable” given the damage it could do. 

“It is utterly unacceptable that an International Treaty could be deliberately torn up, in the full knowledge that the consequences would mean a Hard Border on the Island of Ireland and the havoc that would entail,"” they said. 

"The EU must stand solidly behind its member state, Ireland, and BCAB will also be contacting senior figures in the United States to ensure that there would be no UK / US Trade Deal in these circumstances.” 

Democratic Congressman Brendan Boyle previously warned that any Brexit deal that undermines peace in Ireland would have economic consequences for the UK. 

"I think it would be incredibly naive for anyone to think that there would be no impact if there was in any way backsliding from the Good Friday Agreement," he said. 

"Just as the United States was pivotal in the 1990s, we're prepared again to make sure that we preserve the peace that has been achieved on the island of Ireland," he added.