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The result of the European election in Northern Ireland has been heard in Brussels and must be heard in London, the Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has said.<\/p>\nThe result of the European election in Northern Ireland has been heard in Brussels and must be heard in London, the Taoiseach Leo Varadkar has said.<\/p>\n
Mr Varadkar described the election of two Remain candidates to one Brexiteer as \u201creally significant\u201d.<\/p>\n
Mr Varadkar highlighted that those two candidates \u2013 Sinn F\u00e9in\u2019s Martina Anderson and the cross-community Alliance Party\u2019s Naomi Long \u2013 also supported the Withdrawal Agreement\u2019s border backstop.<\/p>\n
The DUP\u2019s Diane Dodds, a Brexiteer and critic of the backstop, was the other candidate elected.<\/p>\n
The Taoiseach commented on the outcome of the vote north of the border as he attended a European Council meeting of EU leaders in Brussels.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat I think is really significant, and I hope this has been noticed in Britain, is the result of the European elections in Northern Ireland, where for 40 years there have been two unionists and one nationalist,\u201d Mr Varadkar said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat is no longer the case. There is one unionist, one Alliance Party MEP and one nationalist.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo, two out of the three of the MEPs elected in Northern Ireland supporting the European Union and supporting the backstop and I hope that hasn\u2019t been missed as a fact by the British government and the wider British people.\u201d<\/p>\n
He added: \u201cTwo out of three support Northern Ireland remaining in the European Union, two out of three support the backstop, I have heard that message \u2013 I hope the British government and British people have heard that message too, because it has been heard here in Brussels.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mr Varadkar reiterated his concerns that events in London with the Conservative Party leadership contest had increased the risk of a no-deal Brexit<\/p>\n
\u201cI think there is a growing risk of no deal,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs I said a few days ago there is the possibility that the new British prime minister may try to repudiate the Withdrawal Agreement.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere is also the possibility of course that there may be a new British government that might follow a different course, a more European course.<\/p>\n
\u201cI can\u2019t predict either of those things. But what I can say is the European Union and Ireland will stand firm in our position that there can\u2019t be a hard border between Northern Ireland and Ireland and we need a legal treaty guarantee of that.\u201d<\/p>\n