Johnson denies claim he ‘stoked division’ by refusing to condemn fans who booed England taking the knee
The president of the European Commission will visit Dublin on Friday where, among other orders of business, she will discuss the controversial Northern Ireland Protocol with Taoiseach Micheál Martin.
Ursula von der Leyen’s trip comes as tensions continue to mount between both the UK and EU, as well as Northern and the Republic of Ireland, over the implementation of the Protocol – effectively a border in the Irish Sea.
Speaking ahead of the visit, Mr Martin said he looked “forward to discussing with [Ms Von der Leyen] some important topics on the EU agenda including: Covid-19 and … the EU’s relations with the UK, including ongoing work to implement the Protocol”.
Meanwhile, UK ministers have been warned they risk undermining devolution if they go ahead with plans to set up new freeports in Scotland and Wales without the backing of devolved governments. Holyrood business minister Ivan McKee said the funding for the zones proposed by Westminster is “unfair and…
