Question to the Department for Exiting the European Union :

To ask the Secretary of State for Exiting the European Union, what assessment he has made of the potential implications for a hard border on the island of Ireland of the UK leaving the EU without a deal and trading on WTO terms.

The backstop is our ultimate safeguard in the event there is a gap between the end of the implementation period and the start of our new ambitious relationship, we will uphold the commitments of the Belfast Agreement and ensure there’s no return to a hard border. This is essential to safeguarding the lives and livelihoods of the people of Northern Ireland.

The UK Government is clear that, in the event of no deal, we will do everything in our power to prevent a return to a hard border. In such a scenario, we must continue to respect our unique relationship with Ireland, with whom we share a land border and who are co-signatories of the Belfast Agreement.