PM wins vote on Stormont brake with Labour support despite Tory rebellion

Rishi Sunak has won a vote on a key aspect of his deal to amend the Northern Ireland protocol by 515 votes to 29, receiving Labour’s backing while 22 Tory MPs rebelled against the plans.

The Prime Minister won a vote on the so-called ‘Stormont brake’ this afternoon despite a rebellion by Conservative MPs, which included former Prime Ministers Boris Johnson and Liz Truss. Six members of the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) also voted against the proposal.

Sunak set out the details of his deal intended to resolve the dispute over the protocol in a joint press conference with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in February.

Sunak’s ‘Windsor framework‘ includes the introduction of a ‘Stormont brake’ that will allow the Northern Ireland assembly to stop new EU single market rules from applying in the country. The brake would not be able to be used for “trivial reasons” and would be reserved for “significantly different” rules.

Addressing the Commons during this afternoon’s debate, Peter Kyle reiterated that Labour would back Sunak’s deal, telling MPs: “Whereas the government has once again been distracted by rebellion and infighting within their own party, thanks to the Labour Party, they can be sure that the national interests will be served today.”

Northern Ireland Secretary Chris Heaton-Harris urged MPs to back the deal, saying, without it, Northern Ireland would be in the “intolerable situation” of continuing to “have full and automatic dynamic alignment with EU goods rules, with no say for the Northern Ireland Assembly and no veto on amending or replacing those measures”.

DUP leader Jeffrey Donaldson stressed that he wants to see the restoration of devolved government in Northern Ireland, but added: “We’ve got to get it right.”

He told MPs: “In relation to the Windsor Framework, whilst undoubtedly improvements have been made, we have not yet fully addressed this fundamental problem, which is the continued application of EU law for the manufacturing of all goods in Northern Ireland.”

He said the DUP was “committed” to continue working with the government on the protocol, which he said “has to be about delivering on the commitment given to protect Northern Ireland’s place within the internal market of the United Kingdom”.

The DUP has blocked the restoration of power sharing in the assembly since the last set of elections in May, when the DUP lost its status as the largest party in Northern Ireland to Sinn Fein.

The DUP is opposed to the Irish Sea border checks imposed as part of the protocol and wants to see the post-Brexit trading arrangement overhauled before devolved government is resumed. Many Unionists argue that the protocol undermines Northern Ireland’s position within the United Kingdom.

Kyle today accused the government of having overseen a “period of neglect” of Northern Ireland and “ignored” the concerns raised by the DUP about the protocol.

The Shadow Northern Ireland Secretary said: “Demand for action is warranted. It is based on real concerns not confected ones. So the mystery to me has always been why the government took so long to act. Why wait until devolved authorities had collapsed before seeming to care?”