{"id":4141,"date":"2018-11-21T14:18:11","date_gmt":"2018-11-21T19:18:11","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/irishexaminerusa.com\/wp\/?p=4141"},"modified":"2018-11-22T10:19:51","modified_gmt":"2018-11-22T15:19:51","slug":"trade-unionists-warn-of-catastrophic-no-deal-brexit","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/irishexaminerusa.com\/wp\/?p=4141","title":{"rendered":"Trade Unionists Warn Of ‘Catastrophic’ No-Deal Brexit"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"\"
Owen Reidy, assistant general secretary at the Irish Congress of Trade Unions, was among those considering the draft withdrawal agreement (ICTU\/PA)<\/figcaption><\/figure>Trade unionists on both sides of the Irish border have said a \u201ccatastrophic\u201d no-deal Brexit should be avoided at all costs.<\/p>\n

Northern Ireland voted Remain in the Brexit referendum and the Irish Congress of Trade Unions (ICTU) gave a qualified response to Prime Minister Theresa May\u2019s draft withdrawal deal.<\/p>\n

It said if there had to be a divorce, it should be as soft as possible and added: \u201cA UK-wide backstop with the entire UK in a customs union is preferable to a Northern Ireland-only backstop.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe must insist that a no-deal scenario that sees the UK crash out of the EU at the end of March 2019 must be avoided at all costs and is unacceptable.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe consequences of such a no-deal Brexit would be catastrophic.\u201d<\/p>\n

On Wednesday the leadership of the all-Ireland trade union movement at its executive meeting in Belfast considered its response to the draft agreement negotiated between the EU and UK.<\/p>\n

It represents the interests of nearly 800,000 workers across the island of Ireland.<\/p>\n

The organisation said: \u201cGiven that unique cross-border perspective, we campaigned against Brexit. We remain firmly of the view that there is no such thing as a good Brexit for working people in Northern Ireland or in the Republic of Ireland.<\/p>\n

\u201cAny Brexit withdrawal agreement will still be less favorable than full UK membership of the EU for working people across these islands.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe recent draft withdrawal agreement is essentially the end of the beginning of the UK isolating itself from the EU.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt also remains to be seen if there is any real prospect of this proposed agreement commanding the support of the majority of MPs in the House of Commons.\u201d<\/p>\n

The trade union movement warned against a hardening of the border on the island of Ireland, creation of a border in the Irish Sea or an economic frontier between the islands.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt is our view that the best way to achieve this is to negotiate as close as possible a relationship between the UK and the EU; preferably with the UK as a whole remaining in the Single Market and a Customs Union in the longer term.<\/p>\n

\u201cOnly by achieving this can we arrive at a situation where the rights of citizens and workers, and where jobs and trade will not be impacted to a detrimental extent by this Brexit.\u201d<\/p>\n

Earlier this month, TUC general secretary Frances O\u2019Grady accused the Conservatives of negotiating a \u201cblindfold\u201d Brexit deal which did not deliver for working people.<\/p>\n

Share this:<\/h3>