LONDON 14 Sep (ANA) - Two former prime ministers have condemned Boris Johnson’s Brexit plan over fears it could endanger the Irish peace process, trade negotiations and the UK’s integrity.  

 

 Conservative Sir John Major and Labour’s Tony Blair have united to warn that the PM’s bid to override part of his own divorce deal — which the Government admits could break international law — puts the Good Friday Agreement ‘at risk’.

 

 It comes amid a growing rebellion among Tory MPs against the plan.  Sir John and Mr Blair wrote in a joint article for The Sunday Times: ‘This has wide-ranging ramifications. It will not only make negotiation with the EU more difficult, but also any trade negotiations with other nations, including the United States. 

 

Once trust is undermined, distrust becomes prevalent. ‘We both opposed Brexit. We both accept it is now happening. But this way of negotiating, with reason cast aside in pursuit of ideology and cavalier bombast posing as serious diplomacy, is irresponsible, wrong in principle and dangerous in practice. 

 

‘It raises questions that go far beyond the impact on Ireland, the peace process and negotiations for a trade deal – crucial though they are. It questions the very integrity of our nation.’ On Ireland, the two former PMs added: ‘It puts the Good Friday Agreement at risk, because it negates the predictability, political stability and legal clarity that are integral to the delicate balance between the north and south of Ireland that is at the core of the peace process.’(ANA)

FA/ANA/14 September 2020------