Taoiseach uses copy of ‘The Irish Times’ at Brussels dinner to emphasise Border issue

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar presented a copy of The Irish Times to EU leaders to emphasise the importance of the Border issue in Brexit discussions.

Mr Varadkar held up a hard copy of the newspaper at a dinner of European leaders in Brussels on Wednesday night.

The leaders, including British Prime minister Theresa May, are discussing how the UK will leave the European Union next March while ensuring a hard Border does not return to the Island of Ireland.

The Irish Times public affairs editor, Simon Carswell, wrote in Wednesday's Irish Times about the IRA bombing of a Border customs post in 1972 that left nine people dead.

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Four customs officials, two lorry drivers and three IRA men died in the explosion at Newry customs clearing station. (Read the story here)

The Taoiseach brought a copy of the print edition of The Irish Times to the summit dinner to emphasise how far Northern Ireland and Ireland had come.

A spokesman for Mr Varadkar said that he held up a hard copy of the newspaper to show “how far we have come in 30 years, from violence to peace”.

Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Coveney tweeted a link to the article saying “For anyone who wants to understand the politics and emotion behind why the Irish Govt is so clear on the need to provide a guarantee that no border infrastructure will re-emerge on the Island of Ireland please read this”.