MEPs are exploring the prospect of an “EU one-stop shop” in Belfast to provide advice post Brexit.
They are also considering an envoy from the EU to Northern Ireland, who would fulfil a role similar to that of Joe Kennedy III, America’s special envoy for economic affairs.
Fine Gael MEP Seán Kelly, one of those behind the proposals, said the initiatives “could work very well in tandem to enhance economic opportunities in Northern Ireland and facilitate the smooth implementation of the new arrangements under the Windsor Framework”.
The previously permanent European Commission office in Belfast closed in January 2020 when the UK left the EU.
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In a statement this week, the chair and vice-chairs of the European Parliament’s delegation to the EU-UK Parliamentary Partnership Assembly said the proposed EU office would help people and businesses in Northern Ireland to make the most of the opportunities presented by dual market access.
“We would like to propose the establishment of a EU one-stop shop in Belfast, where people and business would get the assistance they need to navigate the legislation applicable to them and the necessary help to be better equipped to benefit fully from the opportunities that Northern Ireland enjoys, thanks to its unique position, with access to both the EU and UK internal markets.
“This EU office would bring together, under the same roof and/or on a single platform, all the necessary expertise that people and business in Northern Ireland need to unlock the full potential of the new arrangements set out in the Windsor Framework,” the statement said.
‘Very favourable response’
Mr Kelly - who is one of the delegation’s vice chairs - told The Irish Times the suggestions had been raised informally with Northern politicians and there had been a “very favourable” response.
He said further “positive” discussions had taken place at an internal meeting of the European Parliament and the next step would be to raise it with UK MPs, potentially at a meeting of the UK-EU Parliamentary Partnership Assembly.
Mr Kelly said such an office would provide practical assistance and help rebuild relationships within Northern Ireland, and he hoped it would also help restore the North’s suspended political institutions.
It is understood that the UK government does not believe an EU office is needed in Northern Ireland and considers that sufficient assistance is already available through the existing formal structures set up by the Windsor Framework and published guidance, such as that regarding business support schemes.
In May 2020, the UK government rejected a request from the EU and the North’s four pro-Remain parties – Sinn Féin, the SDLP, Alliance and the Green Party – to have a permanent EU office in Belfast. There had been an expectation post-Brexit that some form of European presence would be created following the UK’s exit from the EU to assist with continuing EU-UK business.
The then British Cabinet Office minister, Michael Gove, said the UK government would facilitate, where necessary, ad hoc visits by EU officials to Northern Ireland but it did not accept any permanent EU presence was required.
The pro-Remain parties accused London of being “petty”, “provocative” and “unhelpful, but the DUP and the Ulster Unionist Party supported the British government’s position.
