Commons Statement On NI Protocol @ 1230BST After PMQs

Secretary of State for Northern Ireland Brandon Lewis is set to deliver a statement to the House of Commons at around 1230BST (0730ET, 1330CET) after prime minister's questions at midday on the UK gov'ts stance towards the Northern Ireland protocol within the Brexit Withdrawal Agreement.

• At the same time, Cabinet Office minister Lord Frost will publish a 'command paper' setting out the gov'ts stance in more detail.
• The gov't is expected to call for the re-writing of the protocol to remove the customs border down the Irish Sea between Northern Ireland and Great Britain (England, Scotland, Wales), or if this is not done to threaten to unilaterally disapply the protocol under Article 16 of the agreement (the BBC reports a gov't source saying the use of Art.16 is unlikely 'in the short term').
• The EU has offered some changes to the protocol regarding the use of UK-approved medicines and the transport of guide dogs, but this is seen as too minimal by Westminster.
• Needless to say, what the statement and the argument over the NI protocol means is that for the next few months, EU-UK relations will continue to be dominated by Brexit discussions that could turn increasingly sour.