Felicity Buchan
Main Page: Felicity Buchan (Conservative - Kensington)Department Debates - View all Felicity Buchan's debates with the Northern Ireland Office
Northern Ireland
Felicity Buchan Excerpts(3 years ago)
Commons ChamberRead Full debate Read Hansard Text Watch Debate Read Debate Ministerial Extracts
Brandon Lewis
It is interesting that, in talking about a complex and multifaceted situation, the hon. Lady goes straight to talking about Brexit, which again highlights that Labour is so far behind where the general public are on finding a way to move forward to deliver on this. We have been clear from the beginning that the protocol is there because of the unique circumstances in Northern Ireland. It has to work in a way that works for people across the communities in Northern Ireland and for the whole of Northern Ireland—in a flexible, pragmatic way.
The hon. Lady talks about the Prime Minister’s involvement. Obviously, he has been involved, not just in the last few days but consistently through this process. He has been very clear about our determination and his determination—this is exactly what Lord Frost is working on at the moment through the Joint Committee and with my Department—to ensure that we deliver an outcome that means that these products flow in a flexible manner, because the protocol is there. As I said earlier, we understand that the EU has that great concern about protecting its single market. We have to make sure that the protocol respects the Good Friday agreement in all three strands, including east-west.
Felicity Buchan (Kensington) (Con)
Does my right hon. Friend agree that the violence we have seen is utterly unacceptable and that the only way we can make progress on these issues is through peaceful and inclusive dialogue?
Brandon Lewis
My hon. Friend is absolutely right. Obviously, we need to understand all the issues that have come together to lead people to think that violence is the solution, completely unacceptably, and work through that with the political parties and the community groups in Northern Ireland. She is absolutely right: there is no excuse for what we saw the other week. It was utterly reprehensible. As I have said before and as others have rightly said, our thoughts are with the police, whose focus is on keeping people safe.