Will the US save the Northern Ireland Protocol?
Washington delegation heading to UK amid stand-off over post-Brexit trade plan

A free daily digest of the biggest news stories of the day - and the best features from our website
Thank you for signing up to TheWeek. You will receive a verification email shortly.
There was a problem. Please refresh the page and try again.
An influential delegation of US lawmakers is heading to London as concern grows in Washington over the Northern Ireland Protocol.
Following Boris Johnson’s threat to rip up parts of the post-Brexit trade deal, the White House has dispatched “at least half a dozen representatives from the US Congress” for a series of meetings in Brussels, Dublin, London and Belfast, The Guardian reported.
The group will be led by Richie Neal, the “influential” chair of the House of Representatives’ ways and means committee, “which has significant power over future trade deals”, the paper said.
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.

Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
US-Irish relations
Concern in the White House stems from Joe Biden’s commitment to preserving the Good Friday Agreement and Washington’s role as its guarantor. The president has repeatedly stated how integral the protocol is to maintaining peace and stability.
That Neal is being sent to lead the US delegation also underscores that concern. His “interest in Northern Ireland stretches over three decades”, The Guardian said. He also made clear earlier this year that while a US-UK trade deal was “desirable”, it would not progress if there was “any jeopardy” to the Good Friday Agreement.
Neal, one of the US’s “leading Irish-American politicians”, has also called on “political leaders in Northern Ireland to re-establish a government” as quickly as possible, The Irish Times reported following elections last week.
“The people of Northern Ireland just underwent a seismic election, and now, their newly elected officials must carry out their democratic duty through the power-sharing institutions established by the Good Friday agreement,” he said.
“All parties must stay the course to find durable solutions to implement the [Northern Ireland Protocol] and preserve peace and stability on the island.”
Man on the ground
As fear increases in the White House that the UK could move to “override” the protocol, The Times reported that President Biden is “on the verge of appointing a special US envoy to Northern Ireland”.
In a letter to the Foreign Secretary Liz Truss, two senior US congressmen warned the UK government that its plans on the protocol are in “direct confrontation” with the “wishes of the majority of elected officials” in the Northern Ireland assembly.
Bill Keating, who sits on the House foreign affairs committee, and Brendan Boyle, co-chairman of the congressional EU caucus, added that “the ‘worst possible outcome of Brexit’ would be one that led to ‘violence and upheaval’ in Northern Ireland”.
They also warned that US Secretary of State Antony Blinken has made it clear that the White House believed it needed its own envoy on the ground in Northern Ireland, “in line with our historical role as a good faith arbiter”.
What next?
A White House spokesperson responded to questions about the delegation led by Neal by telling The Guardian that “the best path forward is a pragmatic one that requires courage, co-operation and leadership”.
“We urge the parties to continue engaging in dialogue to resolve differences and bring negotiations to a successful conclusion,” they added.
But the UK’s former chief Brexit negotiator David Frost hit out at the White House’s intervention, telling an event in Washington that the government is “well aware of how serious conflict in Northern Ireland would be” and accusing the Biden administration of failing to understand the “niceties” of Northern Ireland, Politico reported.
“It is our country that faced the Troubles. We don’t need lectures from others about the peace process,” Frost said, adding that it was “unreasonable and unfair” for Washington to refuse a trade deal with the UK until the protocol issue is solved.
In an opinion piece for The Telegraph, the former Brexit minister again attacked the arrangement this morning, arguing that “none of us could have imagined that the Protocol would get the handling it got” and accusing the EU of “weaponising” it against the UK.
Continue reading for free
We hope you're enjoying The Week's refreshingly open-minded journalism.
Subscribed to The Week? Register your account with the same email as your subscription.
Sign up to our 10 Things You Need to Know Today newsletter
A free daily digest of the biggest news stories of the day - and the best features from our website
Chas Newkey-Burden has been part of The Week Digital team for more than a decade and a journalist for 25 years, starting out on the irreverent football weekly 90 Minutes, before moving to lifestyle magazines Loaded and Attitude. He was a columnist for The Big Issue and landed a world exclusive with David Beckham that became the weekly magazine’s bestselling issue. He now writes regularly for The Guardian, The Telegraph, The Independent, Metro, FourFourTwo and the i new site. He is also the author of a number of non-fiction books.
-
Shutdown watch: Has McCarthy lost control of the House GOP?
Today's Big Question The House speaker offers a plan to avert a shutdown, and far-right lawmakers say no
By Harold Maass Published
-
The new 40
By The Week Staff Published
-
Trump's rhetoric rankles the anti-abortion movement
Why Trump's latest comments "may be the single biggest issue that leads him to lose in 2024"
By Joel Mathis Published
-
Would Keir Starmer get a better Brexit deal?
Labour leader must overcome fact that European capitals 'consider Brexit yesterday's problem'
By Chas Newkey-Burden Published
-
Hunter Biden hit with federal indictment
A Delaware grand jury has indicted Hunter Biden for three counts of gun-related crimes
By Rafi Schwartz Published
-
Jobs for the boys: does the UK need a minister for men?
Conservative MP calls for dedicated cabinet role to combat 'crisis' in men's mental health and education
By Harriet Marsden Published
-
Would a Biden impeachment help the Democrats?
Critics say the impeachment inquiry against the US president is 'so thin you can see right through it'
By Arion McNicoll Published
-
NYC Mayor Eric Adams' alarm over the city's migrant crisis
New York's mayor warns a wave of asylum seekers could "destroy" the city
By Harold Maass Published
-
Is Biden's whirlwind Vietnam trip a warning to China?
Today's Big Question Emphasizing 'growth and stability,' the president keeps an eye on Hanoi's neighbor to the north
By Rafi Schwartz Published
-
Is Biden losing Black voters?
Talking Point The prospect has Democrats nervous about 2024
By Joel Mathis Published
-
Trump and Tucker Carlson: ridiculing Biden’s health and revelling in criminal charges
feature Republican favourite criticised president’s legs and dismissed legal woes but resisted civil war talk
By Chas Newkey-Burden Published