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Boris Johnson ‘on brink of Brexit deal’ after concessions on Irish border

  • Draft text of agreement with EU could be published on Wednesday if Downing Street gives green light
  • Negotiating teams reportedly agreed on customs border down Irish Sea, despite similar arrangement being rejected by Theresa May

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Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson speaks to mental health professionals during his visit to Watford General Hospital, in Watford, on October 7. Photo: AP
The Guardian
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson appears to be on the brink of reaching a Brexit deal after making major concessions to European Union demands concerning the Irish border.
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A draft text of the agreement could now be published on Wednesday if No 10 Downing Street gives the final green light, according to senior EU and British sources.

It is understood that the negotiating teams have agreed in principle that there will be a customs border down the Irish Sea. A similar arrangement was rejected by Theresa May as a deal that no British prime minister could accept.

Johnson will still have to win over parliament – including the Democratic Unionist party (DUP) and the hardline Tory Brexiters of the European Research Group (ERG) – on the basis that, under the deal, Northern Ireland will still legally be within the United Kingdom’s customs territory.

Arlene Foster, leader of the Northern Ireland's Democratic Unionist Party, speaking at the annual Conservative Party conference in Manchester, England, in September. Photo: Bloomberg
Arlene Foster, leader of the Northern Ireland's Democratic Unionist Party, speaking at the annual Conservative Party conference in Manchester, England, in September. Photo: Bloomberg
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One Eurosceptic source close to both camps indicated that such an arrangement would be “extremely difficult for the DUP to swallow”, but neither the DUP nor ERG publicly made any criticism of Johnson’s efforts.

Steve Baker, the leader of the ERG, emerged from a meeting in No 10 saying he was “optimistic that it is possible to reach a tolerable deal that I am able to vote for” and later told fellow Eurosceptics to “trust in” the prime minister.

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