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The details of the backstop are contained in a draft withdrawal agreement
Some goods coming into Northern Ireland from the rest of the UK would be subject to new checks and controls if the Brexit backstop is implemented.
The details are contained in a draft withdrawal agreement between the UK and EU.
The backstop would mean Northern Ireland would have to stay aligned to some rules of the EU single market.
That means that goods coming into Northern Ireland would need to be checked to see if they meet EU rules.
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Guidance published by the European Commission says: “There would be a need for some compliance checks with EU standards, consistent with risk, to protect consumers, economic traders and businesses in the single market.
“The EU and the UK have agreed to carry out these checks in the least intrusive way possible.”
For industrial goods based on risk assessment, checks could take place “in the market” or at traders’ premises.
Such checks would always be carried out by UK authorities.
For agricultural products, existing checks at ports and airports would “be increased in scale in order to protect the EU’s single market, its consumers and animal health.”
Live animals coming into Northern Ireland from Great Britain are already subject to checks and controls.
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It seems likely that those controls would have to be extended to some food products.
Aodhán Connolly, who represents the large supermarkets in Northern Ireland, said the deal “provides solutions to customs, tariffs, an innovative solution on VAT.”
However Mr Connolly, who is director of the Northern Ireland Retail Consortium added: “There certainly is some work to be done by both the Westminster government and the EU on the checks and administration for goods coming in to Northern Ireland from GB.
“That will need to be light touch and be mitigated in further agreements, hopefully to an absolute bare minimum.
“However this agreement must pass through Parliament. We have always said the backstop is better than no deal.”
The deal means that goods going in the other direction, from Northern Ireland into Great Britain, would not be subject to new controls.
The agreement states “Nothing in this protocol prevents the United Kingdom from ensuring unfettered market access for goods moving from Northern Ireland to the rest of the United Kingdom’s internal market.”
