Scotland, Wales and even LONDON all demand their own special Brexit deal after hints Northern Ireland will be allowed to match EU rules on trade

Nicola Sturgeon, Carwyn Jones and Sadiq Khan all demanded special deals
May is on the brink of giving Northern Ireland 'regulatory alignment' with the EU
The fudge is designed to get NI out of the EU while avoiding a hard border
But devolved leaders all want their own power to stay close to Europe after Brexit

By Tim Sculthorpe, Deputy Political Editor For Mailonline

Published: 16:09 GMT, 4 December 2017 | Updated: 19:59 GMT, 4 December 2017

e-mail

2.1k

View
comments

Scotland, Wales and even London rushed to demand their own special Brexit deal today after it appeared Theresa May was about to agree to special conditions in Northern Ireland.

Leaks from tense talks in Brussels signalled that Northern Ireland would be allowed to maintain 'regulatory alignment' with the rest of the EU.

The intention is to avoid a hard border between the UK and Ireland by ensuring the rules on both sides of the border remain similar after Brexit.

But the idea was seized upon as a way for other parts of Britain which voted Remain to maintain close ties with the EU - and even to effectively stay in the single market.

Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon (pictured last week at Edinburgh Castle) said Scotland should be allowed the same rights to stay close to the EU as apparently proposed for Northern Ireland

London Mayor Sadiq Khan (pictured today in Mumbai) said a separate deal for politicians in Belfast should be matched for London

Welsh First Minister Carwyn Jones (file image) said he expected Wales to be offered the same chances as other parts of the UK

Scottish First Minister Nicola Sturgeon was first with her demand, tweeting: 'If one part of UK can retain regulatory alignment with EU and effectively stay in the single market (which is the right solution for Northern Ireland) there is surely no good practical reason why others can’t.'

Amid discussion over whether the agreement for Belfast amounted to either Britain adopting a Norway-style Brexit that stays close to the EU or a special deal for Northern Ireland, Ms Sturgeon intervened again.

She said: 'If it’s not some kind of Norway status for whole UK, it must mean some kind of special deal for NI. Has to be one or the other.

'And if latter, why not also for Scotland, London and Wales (if it wants it)?'

London Mayor Sadiq Khan - who is on a visit to India this week - was next to intervene.

He went even further, suggesting the deal would leave Northern Ireland in the single market.

He said: 'Huge ramifications for London if Theresa May has conceded that it's possible for part of the UK to remain within the single market and customs union after Brexit.

'Londoners overwhelmingly voted to remain in the EU and a similar deal here could protect tens of thousands of jobs.'

Ms Sturgeon said there was no reason for one part of the UK to keep regulatory alignment and not another

Mr Khan said the prospect of agreement on Northern Ireland had 'huge ramifications' for London, which was one of the few parts of Britain to vote Remain

Welsh first minister Mr Jones followed his devolved colleagues and said he expected Wales to be made the 'same offer'

Welsh First Minister Carwyn Jones then joined in to insist: 'We cannot allow different parts of the UK to be more favourably treated than others.

'If one part of the UK is granted continued participation in the Single Market and Customs Union, then we fully expect to be made the same offer.'

The British side is said to have signed up to enough 'continued regulatory alignment' between Northern Ireland and the Republic to 'support North South cooperation and the protection of the Good Friday agreement'.

That leaves considerably more wriggle room than the initial wording of 'no regulatory divergence'.

European council president Donald Tusk, who will meet the PM later, hinted that a deal was now effectively in place, tweeting: 'Tell me why I like Mondays! Encouraged after my phone call with Taoiseach @campaignforleo on progress on issue of Ireland.

'Getting closer to sufficient progress at December.'