THE conclusion of a trade deal between the UK and the EU is a cause for relief, not celebration, says SDLP economy spokesperson Sinéad McLaughlin MLA.
A deal was finally agreed on Christmas Eve and the full text of the deal – running to over 1,000 pages – was published today, Boxing Day, December 26.
The Foyle MLA said: “Brexit could only be damaging, which is why the SDLP and I campaigned against it. But a trade deal does reduce the damage, as does the Northern Ireland Protocol, so I welcome both.
“Northern Ireland has lost vast amounts of potential investment during the negotiations for a trade deal, so I hope investment will now follow the deal – with location in Northern Ireland offering access both to the UK’s internal market and the EU Single Market.
“Increasingly Northern Ireland’s economy will move towards much closer integration with the economy of Ireland and the rest of the EU.
“I sincerely regret the new barriers in the Irish Sea that have been put in place as a result of the UK government’s decision to leave the Single Market and the Customs Union – which was unnecessary, even with Brexit. Northern Ireland should have retained genuinely unfettered trade East-West as well as North-South.
“But we should now learn from the success of the South’s economy by copying what they have done best, by investing in education, skills and infrastructure. If we do that, the North’s economy can become as successful as that of the South.
“But I do fear there will be serious negative impacts for parts of the North’s economy, particularly for agriculture and food production.
“We also need to step our support for the local retail sector, which is struggling with the impact of Covid and much of which will now need to source new supply lines because of the impact of Brexit bureaucracy.”
