UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has reportedly halted movement on the Northern Ireland Protocol bill until the new year amid hopes of a deal with Brussels.
Officials in London said the bill, which has already passed the House of Commons, will not be returned to the Lords this year as there is talk of an agreement being reached in early February, according to the Sunday Times.
The bill giving the UK the right to suspend parts of the Brexit withdrawal agreement with the EU that deal with the protocol is regarded by some as contravening international law.
In a statement to the Sunday Times, a senior Downing Street official said: "To give room to the negotiations we are not asking for the whips to bring it back to the Lords now. We want to give negotiations the best chance.
"Public discussions of amendments would not be helpful at this stage. We’ll let the team try the negotiations with Brussels first. If that doesn’t work, we’ll do the bill with the Lords.”
Under a timeline being thrashed out between London and Brussels, the EU would accept the need for text changes to the protocol over the next two weeks. Formal negotiations would then take place through January.
A draft deal would be presented to the other players, including the political parties in the north, in the first two weeks of February.
EU member states would also have to agree to the changes, along with the hardline pro-Brexiteers, the European Research Group (ERG) and the DUP in Belfast.
A UK government spokesman said: “The bill has not been paused. It will continue its passage through the Lords in the new year.”
In a letter to Secretary of State Chris Healon-Harris, DUP leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson said unionists will not be “bullied or cajoled” into returning to power sharing, DUP leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson has told the Northern Ireland Secretary.
In a letter, Sir Jeffrey said the UK Government should not be “expending energy targeting the DUP” and ought instead to work towards a solution to the protocol.
