Sir Jeffrey DonaldsonIn his first interview since taking office, the DUP leader said that the Brexit protocol had damaged Northern Ireland's relationship to Great Britain.Sir Jeffrey Donaldson urged Boris Johnson not to deny that the protocol had harmed Northern Ireland’s constitutional position within the United Kingdom.Although the Northern Ireland protocol gives Northern Ireland access to UK markets and EU markets, it also requires checks for goods that arrive in Northern Ireland from Great Britain.Sir Jeffrey stated that there would be "opportunities moving forward" through the protocol, but they are currently unaccessible due to "unnecessary obstacles" in the Irish Sea.Sky News interviewed him on Sunday. He said: "At heart of the Belfast Agreement or Good Friday Agreement is our three sets of relations, and there's an extremely delicate balance within that agreement about how those relationships will be managed."Northern Ireland and Great Britain are two of the most important relationships.""The agreement is very explicit. The principle of consent safeguards the rights of Northern Ireland's people to decide their constitutional status.Destabilised and undermined"When you hurt one of these relationships, you also harm all of them.""That's exactly the problem we've witnessed, because this protocol has harmed our relationship with Great Britain."So has our relationship with Ireland, which has in fact weakened and destabilised Northern Ireland's relationships.""We have seen this on our streets. It is crucial that all of us resolve these issues."Unionists, represented in Northern Ireland by DUP, are deeply dissatisfied with the protocol. It creates a border between Northern Ireland (Great Britain) and Great Britain. This means that EU rules governing goods trade still apply to the region.Sir Jeffrey was asked why protesting loyalists should believe Mr Johnson would deliver on the issue after he signed the protocol and negotiated it. He said that the Prime Minister should get a second chance.Continue the storyHe said that he was willing to give the Prime Minister an opportunity to correct the mistakes made to Northern Ireland by the protocol."I believe there is a lot of opportunity ahead. These unnecessary barriers prevent us from achieving those opportunities.We must restore Northern Ireland's position within the UK, both legally and on the market."The EU announced Wednesday a variety of solutions to facilitate the implementation of the Protocol.The British Government requested that the grace period for chilled meats entering Northern Ireland from Britain be extended. This was to avoid the so-called "sausage warfare" trade dispute.In an article published in the Irish Times Saturday, Lord Frost (a Brexit minister) and Brandon Lewis (the Northern Ireland Secretary) said that the extension was "welcome", but it "addresses only part of the problem."They warned that the deal could cause "damage" the Good Friday Agreement. This agreement was signed in 1998 to end decades of sectarian violence in Northern Ireland.
