BORIS Johnson has been told he features a duty to require a stand against EU plans to put in permanent checkpoints in Northern Ireland before the top of the year.

Former Brexit Party MEP Ben Habib was speaking after European Commission spokesman Daniel Ferrie insisted the United Kingdom needed to satisfy its obligations in accordance with the Northern Ireland protocol. Mr Ferrie was himself speaking in response to the choice by Gordon Lyons, Northern Ireland’s minister for agriculture and a Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) politician, to prevent work on permanent facilities to see goods coming back from Great Britain, also as halting the recruitment of inspectors.

Mr Habib, a vociferous critic of the Government’s post-Brexit policy towards Northern Ireland, told Chudonnews: “It is now for unionists in Northern Ireland and therefore the refore the remainder of the United Kingdom to face up against our own Government and the EU so as to guard our precious union.”

He added: “Gordon Lyons is completely correct to refuse to create permanent structures for customs checks in Northern Ireland .

“These would only be needed if the Northern Ireland Protocol were legal. It is not.”

Mr Habib explained: “It breaches the Act of Union 1800, it breaches the Northern Ireland act 1998, it breaches the Belfast agreement and it breaches the Article 50 process of leaving the EU.


“It also fundamentally undermines all Conservative Party Brexit manifesto pledges made at the last election.”

In a further swipe at Mr Johnson, he said: “The PM promised the country would go away the EU together country, he broke this most vital promise.”

The Northern Ireland protocol is aimed toward preventing a tough approach the island of Ireland.

But critics have said requirements for extra paperwork and checks on goods travelling between British mainland and Northern Ireland have instead resulted during a border down Irish Sea.

Permanent facilities are due to be built at Belfast, Larne, Warrenpoint and Foyle ports in Northern Ireland, but these projects are still within the design and preparatory phases.

Explaining his decision on Friday, Mr Lyons said: "I've just let executive colleagues know that today I instructed my department to halt work on a variety of issues concerning work on the ports.

"This is in and around variety of areas, first of all further infrastructure, any longer infrastructure builds; the extra recruitment of staff; and also the charging at the ports."

The move was in response to the "practical difficulties" caused by the Protocol, Mr Lyons explained.


He was also concerned about what is going to happen when the present grace periods which currently govern protocol bureaucracy end at the beginning of April.

He added: "We do not know what the movement of retail goods from Great Britain into Northern Ireland goes to seem like, we do not have the support in situation through the digital assistance scheme yet either, and every one of the SPS (sanitary and phytosanitary) issues round the end of the grace period are with great care uncertain and it's real nightmare for us and it's getting to be causing us an awful lot of problems."

Speaking today, Mr Ferrie said: “We expect an equivalent commitment when it involves the United Kingdom government’s obligations under the protocol regarding the permanent facilities that require to be put in situation by the center of 2021, in line with the protocol and also in line with the Joint Committee decisions from last December.”

Stormont’s legal advisers are asked for an opinion on the choice  and Mr Lyons could also be required to proposals to the Northern Ireland Executive led by First Minister Arlene Foster.