A legal challenge by a number of unionist political leaders against the Northern Ireland Protocol is set to begin today (Friday 14 May) in the High Court in Belfast.
The judicial review has been launched by former politician Ben Habib, Baroness Hoey, Lord Trimble, Rt Hon Arlene Foster MLA, Dr Steve Aiken OBE MLA, and Jim Allister QC MLA.
They believe that the Northern Ireland Protocol, agreed between the UK Government and the European Union as part of Brexit, breaches the Act of Union and the 1998 Good Friday Agreement.
As legal proceedings begin the group have shared the following statement:
“Today we are looking forward to the commencement of our legal challenge to the EU Protocol.
“It is not just trade and economic prosperity but the constitutional integrity of the United Kingdom that requires defeat of the Union-dismantling Protocol.
“The purpose of this Judicial Review challenge is to undo the great wrong which was done in the imposition, without consent, of arrangements which leave Northern Ireland as a rule taker of foreign laws - over which we have no control, the United Kingdom partitioned down the Irish Sea and trade fettered disastrously with our biggest market.
“All this we believe infringes our constitutional and economic entitlements under the Acts of Union and the assurances of the Belfast Agreement, as well as our basic democratic entitlement to be governed only by laws made by those we elect.
“We are grateful to our legal team under the leadership of John Larkin QC who have marshalled compelling arguments which we look forward to being expounded over the next few days.
“We also wish to acknowledge and thank all who have generously contributed financially to advancing this vital case. We may be the named applicants but we take this action on behalf of all who care about democracy, our economy, the future of the United Kingdom and basic fairness.”