Mrs Dodds said,
“The Protocol is not supported by a single unionist party in Northern Ireland. We have a Five-Point Plan which includes removing it. But we can only do that if we win the election. If Sinn Fein wins, that will send the wrong message to Brussels.
The Irish Sea Border must go. It doesn’t represent the best of both worlds. It separates us from our main market, within our own Country. Far from protecting political stability in Northern Ireland, it remains an existential threat to our place within the United Kingdom. It must be opposed both politically and legally. We have supported the joint unionist legal action and welcome this next step to the Supreme Court. The Protocol has driven up haulage costs between GB and NI, frustrates business and individuals from trading with our most important partner – Great Britain and threatens the supply in the middle of a health pandemic.
Unchanged, it can only get worse, but we have made progress in convincing many of the merits of our case. The Government knows the Protocol does not enjoy Unionist support. The EU can be in no doubt that the Protocol casts a long shadow over Northern Ireland’s political arrangements."
