DUP leader had “frank and open discussion” with Micheal Martin

By PA reporter

DUP leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson said he had a “frank and open discussion” with Irish premier Micheal Martin.

Speaking in Dublin, Sir Jeffrey said they discussed a range of issues including the Northern Ireland Protocol.

“I made clear to the Taoiseach that unionist concerns are growing and certainly not diminishing in relation to the harm that the Protocol is doing to our relationship with the rest of the United Kingdom, the harm it is doing to trade between Great Britain and Northern Ireland, and, indeed, very importantly, the political harm the protocol is causing, and has the potential to cause, as we move into the autumn and towards an Assembly election,” he told reporters.

“I have said very clearly to the Taoiseach that in circumstances where the relationship, what you might describe as the east/west relationship, the relationship between Northern Ireland and Great Britain, is being harmed on a daily basis by the protocol.”

He said the harm to the east/west relationship may have consequences for the north/south relationship in Ireland.

Sir Jeffrey Donaldson meeting with Taoiseach Micheal Martin at Government Buildings, Dublin

“Unionists cannot reasonably be expected to work as normal on a north/south basis when our relationship with the rest of the United Kingdom is being harmed on a daily basis by this protocol,” he said.

“That is simply the reality of the political situation that we face.

“I don’t want to see a political crisis in Northern Ireland, I don’t want to see the political institutions being harmed, I want to see a Northern Ireland where we move towards a more united community, but the protocol is harming our capacity to build that united community.”