Northern Irish Unionists Slam Plans To Impose Paper Check To Trade With UK - Reports

Members of parliament from Northern Ireland's Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) on Wednesday slammed Northern Ireland Secretary Julian Smith over plans to introduce special paperwork for businesses selling their goods to the United Kingdom to trade after Brexit, calling this approach "despicable," media reported

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 23rd October, 2019) Members of parliament from Northern Ireland's Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) on Wednesday slammed Northern Ireland Secretary Julian Smith over plans to introduce special paperwork for businesses selling their goods to the United Kingdom to trade after Brexit, calling this approach "despicable," media reported.

Addressing the Northern Ireland affairs select committee, Smith said that the increased paperwork would be "minimal" and serve the interests of Northern Ireland, The Guardian newspaper reported. The secretary added that the government would work with business and do its best to ensure unimpeded trade between the region and the United Kingdom.

Smith's remarks were met with criticism by unionists who said that it was "disgraceful" to force businessmen who trade within their own country to file additional papers, the media said.

"If you had to move goods from North Yorkshire to London and have to fill in a form, you'd feel pretty aggrieved about that. We are in the same country. It is disgraceful," Ian Paisley Junior, the member of parliament for North Antrim, stressed after Smith indicated that he lived in North Yorkshire and London, as quoted by the newspaper.

DUP member of parliament Jim Shannon noted that the possible deal was "absolutely despicable."

Earlier in October, Northern Irish unionists backed UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson's proposal to avoid backstop, which includes the creation of a regulatory zone on the island of Ireland covering all goods, and keeping Northern Ireland within the UK customs territory, instead of in the EU customs area.