He said, "Neale Richmond’s interview with the BBC was yet another example where the Irish Government just doesn't get it. Telling us that you are listening and how much you understand concerns doesn't work when all evidence points to the opposite being true.
This was demonstrated most clearly through a ridiculous attempt to criticise the Economy Minister for seeking new business opportunities in the Netherlands whilst opposing the Protocol. It is the Economy Minister's job to assist businesses to grow wherever possible. It would be a dereliction of his duty however to ignore the fact that the NI Protocol places barriers to trade between Northern Ireland and Great Britain.
You cannot claim to either understand the concerns of unionists or care about Northern Ireland business when you're willingly cheerleading for something which undermines the principle of consent and which increases the cost and complexity of doing business with our single largest market.
That is then compounded with either inferences or direct claims that very few people are actually concerned about the Protocol. Again it is difficult to claim you understand concerns when you're claiming they don't even exist.
If Mr Richmond and his colleagues want to give practical demonstration to their apparent understanding of unionist concerns then they can use their influence in Brussels to reach a sustainable outcome which can command unionist support."
