EU Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier gave a very guarded, if not sceptical, welcome on Friday 8 June to the proposals made the previous day by the UK government to resolve the Irish question. Proposals which, in effect, merely extend the United Kingdom’s belonging to the customs union for a further year in order to avoid a return to a hard border on the island of Ireland.
The “Temporary Customs Agreement” presented by the UK government on 7 June proposes applying European rules on...