AQW 1988/17-22

Mr John Blair
Alliance Party
South Antrim

Tabled Date: 12/02/2020
Answered On Date: 26/02/2020
Priority Written: No

Question:
To ask the Minister for the Economy to detail what preparation her Department is taking to enact the terms of the Revised Protocol on Ireland and Northern Ireland included in the Withdrawal Agreement.

Answer:

The responsibility for enacting the terms of the Protocol lies primarily with the United Kingdom Government (UKG). There are likely to be some implications for devolved matters falling into the remit of my Department and its Arm’s Length Bodies.

While we are undertaking contingency planning now to identify those potential impacts, the extent of our preparations will depend on the practical detail of the implementation of the Protocol which has not yet been agreed by UK Government and the EU.

My immediate priority is to prevent any adverse impacts on NI business and consumers and to hold UKG to its commitments to protect NI’s place in the UK internal market. I will also seek to support business to adjust to the new economic reality and to take advantage of the opportunities ahead.