Liz Truss’ Brexit strategy sparks EU fury as UK ‘haven’t even tried’ row-solving proposal
Liz Truss 'has not shown political will' says EU policy chief
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As the 160,000 Conservative members are casting their ballot to elect the new Prime Minister, Tory leadership hopeful Liz Truss is “willing to sacrifice the stability in Northern Ireland” to please the Tory members and defeat rival Rishi Sunak, an EU member exposed. Liz Truss, who is still serving as Foreign Secretary in Boris Johnson’s Government, has put forward a Northern Ireland Protocol bill supposedly designed to solve the political crisis in Northern Ireland. An EU expert accused Liz Truss of leveraging the bill to tap into Conservatives’ anti-EU sentiment in a bid to get elected – at the expense of the Northern Irish people.
Speaking of Liz Truss’ handling of the Northern Ireland issue, Dr Zuleeg told Express.co.uk: “I would go further than just inaction. This is a deliberate choice the UK Government is making. There are proposals on the table, which could be implemented, which would help.
“Yes, the UK Government claims they wouldn’t go far enough. But in the end, they haven’t even tried to engage with these proposals. They haven’t tried to implement any of them.
“So, it is in my view clear this is not about making things better in Northern Ireland. This is about pleasing people within the Conservative Party.
“And for that, they’re even willing to sacrifice the stability in Northern Ireland.”
Dr Zuleeg continued: “And I think that is a major concern. And that is also why this is a concern in Dublin, Brussels, and the other European capitals but also in Washington.
“It’s something which I would hope the new Prime Minister will start to see reason and try to draw back from this path of action.
“But unfortunately, I’m pessimistic given what these candidates have said before.”
Ms Truss has prided herself on her accomplishment over the Northern Ireland Protocol bill.
The bill, she claims, is designed to fix the political crisis in Northern Ireland by scrapping the Irish Sea checks border – currently in place under the current protocol.
In early May, the unionist DUP party ruled out forming a coalition with the now-largest party Sinn Fein until all their concerns over the Protocol are addressed.
The DUP leader, Jeffrey Donaldson, fears the Irish Sea checks border put in place under the current protocol will inevitably exacerbate the cost-of-living crisis and distance the province from Great Britain.
To solve the issue and broker the deadlock, Liz Truss put forward a bill, which would scrap that checks border.
According to Dr Zuleeg, her move is purely political and aimed at galvanising the Conservative members to win the Conservative leadership election and become the next Prime Minister.
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Ms Truss has vowed in her launch campaign video to “tackle the impasse in Northern Ireland through the Protocol Bill that will fix the problems and restore the primacy of the Belfast (Good Friday) Agreement.”
In retaliation, the EU took legal action against the UK through infringement proceedings which could ultimately lead to a lump sum fine and/or an ongoing penalty payment on the UK Government.
Should Liz Truss become the next Prime Minister and keep going down that anti-EU path, her Government is likely to face a lump sum fine and potentially a “complete cancelling” of the Brexit deal, Dr Zuleeg said.
In a worrying sign for the EU, Liz Truss has a huge 34-point leader over rival Rishi Sunak in the leadership race to become the next Prime Minister, a YouGov poll for the Times shows.
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