Don’t touch Northern Ireland protocol, EU leaders warn Boris Johnson

PM could scrap Brexit deal as early as next week
Boris Johnson could cancel parts of the protocol as soon as next week
Boris Johnson could cancel parts of the protocol as soon as next week
JAMES MANNING/PA

European leaders today warned Britain against overriding the Northern Ireland Brexit deal, with one telling ministers: “Don’t touch this.”

Olaf Scholz, the German chancellor, said that Johnson should back away from threats to abandon the agreement that the prime minister himself signed in 2019.

“No one should unilaterally scrap or break or in any way change the arrangement we agreed on together,” Scholz said.

Alexander De Croo, the Belgian prime minister, went further, saying that the EU’s message was “quite clear”. “Don’t touch this, this is something we agreed on,” he said.

Micheal Martin, the Irish prime minister, told Johnson in talks this morning that the EU had “engaged constructively” in the protocol discussions.

“He set out clearly his serious concerns at any unilateral action