THE DUP last night stood alone among Stormont's main parties in welcoming Boris Johnson's proposals for breaking the Brexit deadlock.
In a letter to European Commission president Jean-Claude Juncker, the British prime minister tabled a plan that would see Northern Ireland effectively remain tied to EU single market rules for goods but leave the customs union.
It also proposed that the currently suspended Stormont assembly would have to give consent to continued EU alignment and renew that approval every four years - effectively giving unionists a veto.
A statement from the commission said Mr Juncker welcomed the proposals for "full regulatory alignment" between the north and EU but noted that "problematic points" remained, particularly over the "governance of the backstop".
"The delicate balance struck by the Good Friday Agreement must be preserved."
In his letter, Mr Johnson said both sides needed to "move beyond existing positions to get us to an agreement in time".
"We are ready to do that, and this letter sets out what I regard as a reasonable compromise: the broad landing zone in which I believe a deal can begin to take shape," the Tory leader said.
Mr Johnson and Leo Varadkar spoke by phone yesterday evening, with the Irish government saying the taoiseach said "the proposals do not fully meet the agreed objectives of the backstop".
"However, he indicated that he would study them in further detail, and would consult with the EU institutions, including the Task Force and our EU partners.
A statement from the DUP, which remains in a confidence and supply arrangement with the Conservatives at Westminster, said the letter's contents provided a "basis for the EU to continue in a serious and sustained engagement" with the British government that would not put the UK's internal market at risk.
"These proposals, which are entirely consistent with the spirit and principles of the Belfast Agreement, demonstrate commitment to working with our neighbours in the Republic of Ireland in a spirit of mutual co-operation whilst respecting the integrity of Northern Ireland’s economic and constitutional position within the United Kingdom.
"They also protect the integrity of the institutions created by the Belfast and St Andrews agreements."
However, Sinn Féin deputy leader Michelle O'Neill said what was on offer would "drive a coach and horses through the Good Friday Agreement".
“The British government is offering an all-Ireland regulatory zone for all goods, yet makes these arrangements dependent on the consent of the assembly, effectively giving the DUP a veto – this is entirely unacceptable," she said.
SDLP leader Colum Eastwood said the "imposition of a customs border" breached previous government commitments.
"The imposition of customs checks, with a need for physical infrastructure, will introduce heavy burdens on cross-border businesses and supply chains that will seriously threaten profitability in key sectors – we have already rejected it."
Ulster Unionist leader Robin Swann said what had been proposed would see the north "in a perpetual cycle of uncertainty".
"These proposals haven`t been thought through and would see DUP statements that Northern Ireland would leave the EU on the same terms as the rest of the United Kingdom being flipped on their heads," he said.
Alliance leader and MEP Naomi Long said: "This proposal is in many ways the worst of both worlds, as we've gone from having no new borders to having two."
Fianna Fáil Brexit spokeswoman Lisa Chambers said the proposals were "not realistic and fall very far short of what is required to protect the all-island economy".
In London, Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn also rejected the proposals as "worse than Theresa May's deal", adding: "I think it will also undermine the Good Friday Agreement."
