Britain and EU have understanding on Northern Ireland issues but deal ‘by no means done’, Rishi Sunak says
Britain and the EU have an understanding on what needs to be done to resolve issues surrounding the Northern Ireland Protocol but a deal is “by no means done”, Rishi Sunak has said.
Speaking during a question and answer session after his speech at the Munich Security Conference, the prime minister said Britain wanted to have a positive relationship with the bloc.
But he said that there were “real issues that need resolving”.
“The way that the protocol has been implemented, it’s causing very real challenges for families, for people, for businesses on the ground,” he said.
“We’re engaging in those conversations with the European Union all the time and we have been for a while, but what I’d say is there is still work to do.
“There are still challenges to work through. We have not resolved all these issues.
“No, there isn’t a deal that has been done, there is an understanding of what needs to be done.”
Mr Sunak added that “we’re working through (the issues) hard and we will work through them intensely with the EU, but we are by no means done”.
It comes after Sinn Fein’s leader Mary Lou McDonald said “significant progress” had been made to resolve the row over the Northern Ireland Protocol and a deal is “very much game on”.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Hope of NI Brexit breakthrough
Speaking after discussions with Mr Sunak, who was in Northern Ireland on Friday to hold talks with political leaders, she told reporters: “We have always believed that a deal on the protocol was possible and we’ve always known it was necessary.
“It is clear that significant progress has been made and we are very heartened by that. We now want to see a speedy concluding of matters.
Read more:
Prime minister visits Belfast for talks on Northern Ireland Protocol
Rishi Sunak and Ursula von der Leyen promise to ‘work together’ on Northern Ireland
“The bottom line is that we have to ensure that any deal provides for ongoing access to the European single market, no hardening of the border on the island of Ireland and a protection of the Good Friday Agreement in all of its parts.
“It seems to us that it’s very much game on.”
Mary Lou McDonald with Michelle O’Neill
She said if these terms are reached it is then “a matter for everyone, for each of the political parties to step up, get back to work and deliver for people here in the north of Ireland”.
This is likely aimed at the DUP and other unionists, who have collapsed the Stormont assembly in protest over the protocol.
Mr Sunak travelled to Belfast, along with Northern Ireland Secretary Chris Heaton-Harris, to meet Stormont leaders amid mounting speculation a deal on post-Brexit trading arrangements could be days away.
After emerging from talks with Mr Sunak, DUP leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson said while “progress has been made” on the Northern Ireland Protocol, there is “still some work required”.
DUP leader Sir Jeffrey Donaldson
He warned that “if and when a final agreement is reached, we will want to carefully consider the detail of that agreement and decide if the agreement does, in fact meet our seven tests”.
These “seven tests” were set out by the party in 2021 and include no new checks of any sort on goods being traded between GB and NI.
Asked if he will compromise on these tests for a deal to pass muster, Sir Jeffrey said it “is not a question of compromising”, but rather the “UK government honouring the commitments they’ve made”.
Rishi Sunak may not want to look like he is jumping the gun over new deal
Rishi Sunak very much downplaying reports that there could be a deal revealed as soon as Monday.
I guess the question is, whether that is an indication of genuine delays and problems and that there may not be something coming in the imminent future, or whether this is more strategy.
I think when you look at some of the choreography of the last few days, discussions going on in Belfast, the foreign secretary in Brussels yesterday, and meetings with EU leaders in Munich, it feels like there is something more substantial that is moving there.
So what may be going on, quite frankly, is an attempt not to sound too presumptuous in terms of revealing a deal without the DUP’s permission. Because of course, it is the DUP, unionist politicians in Northern Ireland, that really need to approve of this deal.
Because if they don’t, they will refuse to go back into power-sharing in Belfast and it means the democratic institutions, the executive, and the assembly there, won’t sit again.
So Rishi Sunak is trying to keep multiple audiences happy here, and that is potentially why he doesn’t want to sound too presumptuous or looking like he is jumping the gun in announcing any potential deal on the Northern Ireland Protocol.
The mechanism has left Northern Ireland without a devolved power-sharing executive since early last year.
The protocol has overshadowed Northern Irish politics since it was agreed upon as part of the Brexit deal in a bid to avoid a hard border on the island of Ireland.
Members of the unionist community are unhappy with the difficulties it creates for trade between Northern Ireland and Great Britain, with the DUP refusing to cooperate with forming a devolved Executive in Stormont until the issues are resolved.
What is the Northern Ireland Protocol and why does it matter?
The UK government says the protocol is not working and wants to override it with new legislation if the EU does not agree to changes – a move Brussels has warned is “illegal and unrealistic”.
However, tensions have cooled in recent months, with both sides pledging to work together to find a way forward.
Last month, the EU and the UK said there was a “new basis” for resolving the Northern Ireland Protocol row after an agreement was reached in sharing trade data.
Donald Trump has said he will sue the BBC for between $1bn and $5bn over the editing of his speech on Panorama.
The US president confirmed he would be taking legal action against the broadcaster while on Air Force One overnight on Saturday.
“We’ll sue them. We’ll sue them for anywhere between a billion (£792m) and five billion dollars (£3.79bn), probably sometime next week,” he told reporters.
“We have to do it, they’ve even admitted that they cheated. Not that they couldn’t have not done that. They cheated. They changed the words coming out of my mouth.”
Mr Trump then told reporters he would discuss the matter with Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer over the weekend, and claimed “the people of the UK are very angry about what happened… because it shows the BBC is fake news”.
The Daily Telegraph reported earlier this month that an internal memo raised concerns about the BBC’s editing of a speech made by Mr Trump on 6 January 2021, just before a mob rioted at the US Capitol building, on its flagship late-night news programme.
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
BBC crisis: How did it happen?
The concerns regard clips spliced together from sections of the president’s speech to make it appear he told supporters he was going to walk to the US Capitol with them to “fight like hell” in the documentary Trump: A Second Chance?, which was broadcast by the BBC the week before last year’s US election.
Following a backlash, both BBC director-general Tim Davie and BBC News chief executive Deborah Turness resigned from their roles.
‘No basis for defamation claim’
On Thursday, the broadcaster officially apologised to the president and added that it was an “error of judgement” and the programme will “not be broadcast again in this form on any BBC platforms”.
A spokesperson said that “the BBC sincerely regrets the manner in which the video clip was edited,” but they also added that “we strongly disagree there is a basis for a defamation claim”.
Earlier this week, Mr Trump’s lawyers threatened to sue the BBC for $1bn unless it apologised, retracted the clip, and compensated him.
The US president said he would sue the broadcaster for between $1bn and $5bn. File pic: PA
Legal challenges
But legal experts have said that Mr Trump would face challenges taking the case to court in the UK or the US.
The deadline to bring the case to UK courts, where defamation damages rarely exceed £100,000 ($132,000), has already expired because the documentary aired in October 2024, which is more than one year.
Also because the documentary was not shown in the US, it would be hard to show that Americans thought less of the president because of a programme they could not watch.
Read more from Sky News:
Key findings in 20,000 pages of documents in the Epstein files
Banksy art theft lands burglar with 13-month prison sentence
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Sky’s Katie Spencer on what BBC bosses told staff on call over Trump row
Newsnight allegations
The BBC has said it was looking into fresh allegations, published in The Telegraph, that its Newsnight show also selectively edited footage of the same speech in a report broadcast in June 2022.
A BBC spokesperson said: “The BBC holds itself to the highest editorial standards. This matter has been brought to our attention and we are now looking into it.”
This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly.
Please refresh the page for the latest version.
You can receive breaking news alerts on a smartphone or tablet via the Sky News app. You can also follow us on WhatsApp and subscribe to our YouTube channel to keep up with the latest news.
A man has been given a 13-month prison sentence for stealing Banksy’s famous Girl With Balloon print from a London gallery.
Larry Fraser, 49, of Beckton, east London, was sentenced on Friday after pleading guilty to one count of non-residential burglary at Kingston Crown Court on 9 October.
The print, one of the street artist‘s most famous, was stolen from a gallery in New Cavendish Street in London at around 11pm on 8 September last year.
The recovered artwork back in the gallery. Pic: Metropolitan Police
Fraser used a hammer to smash his way through a glass entrance door at the Grove Gallery before stealing the artwork, which was valued at £270,000.
He concealed his identity with a mask, hooded jacket and gloves, but the Metropolitan Police’s Flying Squad was able to identify him and track him to a location streets away.
He was also caught on CCTV loading the artwork into a van before fleeing the scene.
A second man, 54-year-old James Love, was accused of being the getaway driver in the burglary, but cleared of stealing the print.
Larry Fraser. Pic: Metropolitan Police
Damage to the Grove Gallery after the theft. Pic: Metropolitan Police
Fraser was arrested at his home address on 10 September, within 48 hours of the burglary, and charged the next day.
Officers were able to recover the artwork after executing a warrant on the Isle of Dogs. It has now been returned to the gallery.
Fraser pleaded to the court that he was struggling with a historic drug debt and agreed to steal the work “under a degree of pressure and fear”.
He said he did not know what he would be stealing, nor its value, until the day of the offence.
Fraser was caught on CCTV taking the artwork away from the gallery. Pic: Metropolitan Police
Jeffrey Israel, defending, said Fraser lived with his mother as her principal carer, and had only managed to “break his cycle of drug addiction” after his last prison sentence.
He added that it “would take a bold advocate” to suggest that the value of the print had increased by the burglary, but insisted “that is probably the reality”.
Read more:
Banksy artwork ‘worth millions’ scrubbed off wall outside court
Blink-182 star to auction rare Banksy worth millions
Judge Anne Brown was unmoved, however, and said the offence was “simply too serious” for a suspended sentence.
“This is a brazen and serious non-domestic burglary,” she said.
“Whilst you did not know the precise value of the print, you obviously understood it to be very valuable.”
She added: “Whilst I am sure there was a high degree of planning, this was not your plan.”
However, Fraser may be eligible for immediate release due to time spent on electronic curfew.
Detective Chief Inspector Scott Mather, who led the Met’s investigation, said: “Banksy’s Girl With Balloon is known across the world – and we reacted immediately to not just bring Fraser to justice but also reunite the artwork with the gallery.
“The speed at which this took place is a testament to the tireless work of the flying squad officers – in total it took just four days for normality to be restored.”
The 2004 artwork was part of a £1.5m collection of 13 Banksy pieces at the gallery.
Gallery manager, Lindor Mehmetaj, said it was “remarkable” for the piece to have been recovered after the theft.
The 29-year-old said: “I was completely, completely shocked, but in a very, very positive way when the Flying Squad showed me the actual artwork.
“It’s very hard to put into words, the weight that comes off your shoulders.”
UK
‘Incredibly dangerous’ sex offender Chao Xu jailed – as police say there could be hundreds more victims
An “incredibly dangerous” sex offender who drugged his victims and installed spy cameras around his home has been jailed for life with a minimum term of 14 years – as police appeal for hundreds more potential victims to come forward.
Warning: This article contains details of sexual offences
Chinese national Chao Xu, 33, has been described by police as “one of the most prolific offenders ever uncovered” by the Metropolitan Police.
Xu, who was a law postgraduate student at the University of Greenwich in London between 2015 and 2016, ran his own recruitment business and targeted victims at networking events at his home.
He invented his “Spring of Life” cocktail, a mix of alcohols and Chinese herbal medicines, to sedate guests, and planted spy cameras in items including air fresheners, sanitary packaging and speakers.
Chao Xu setting up his camera
Pic: Met Police:
Police found thousands of pictures and videos, with some showing unconscious or incapacitated victims in his flat in Greenwich, south-east London.
Xu, who is from China but is believed to have been living in the UK since 2013, also covertly filmed women on their daily commutes at stations such as London Bridge in so-called upskirting incidents.
He pleaded guilty to 24 sex offences between 2021 and 2025 at Woolwich Crown Court in August relating to six victims, with two charges relating to a seventh woman left to lie on file.
Xu admitted four counts of rape, eight counts of assault by penetration, four counts of sexual assault, four counts of voyeurism, two counts of administering a substance with intent and two counts of operating equipment beneath the clothing of another without consent (commonly known as upskirting).
Special drink
Pic: Met Police:
An air freshener with a hidden camera.
Pic: Met Police
An air freshener with a hidden camera
Pic: Met Police
‘Incredibly dangerous man’
His Honour Judge Christopher Grout described Xu as an “incredibly dangerous man” who “took great enjoyment” from his offending.
“Your behaviour was calculated and planned, evidenced by the covert recording systems you had set up in your flats and the fact you had incapacitated a number of your victims by drugging them.
“You betrayed the trust of a number of women who you befriended in the most appalling ways imaginable,” he added.
Speaker with hidden camera
Pic: Met Police:
Hidden camera in bottom left of women’s sanitary packaging
Pic: Met Police
Could be hundreds of victims
Another 11 alleged victims have since come forward but the Metropolitan Police believe there are hundreds more in the UK and China, with offences committed in workplaces, public spaces and overseas.
Acting Detective Superintendent Lewis Sanderson described Xu as one of the “most prolific” offenders the force has ever investigated, adding that his “crimes were calculated, sustained, and devastating”.
Speaking outside the court on Friday, he said: “Chao Xu was a prolific and predatory sexual offender who committed some of the most cowardly and abhorrent crimes imaginable. His actions caused deep and lasting harm.”
“The number of victims of sexual assault, voyeurism and upskirting is believed to be in the hundreds. This includes individuals filmed without consent in Xu’s flat at his workplace and in public spaces.
“That is why today I’m making a direct appeal. If you believe you may have been a victim of Chao Xu, or if you have any information that could assist our investigation, please come forward. You will be listened to. You will be believed and you will be supported.”
Please use Chrome browser for a more accessible video player
Xu was ‘prolific’ sex offender
He said all of the sexual assault victims were Chinese women, aged between 18 and 30, while the voyeurism victims are also young females but of different ethnicities.
He added that there will be women who may not know they are victims of his crimes, as they may have been drugged by Xu.
Detectives were alerted to Xu’s crimes after he held a networking event in Greenwich in June.
Read more from Sky News:
Man admits to summer camp attacks
Murder investigation after girl’s death
Burglar jailed over Banksy theft
When one of the women who attended became unwell, Xu offered to let her stay, before raping her several times, the Metropolitan Police said.
They later found he had drugged her with substances known to cause drowsiness and incapacitation.
The case included six million messages on WeChat, the popular Chinese messaging app, most of them in Mandarin, which all had to be checked with the help of a translator.
-
Sports2 years agoStory injured on diving stop, exits Red Sox game
-
Sports3 years ago‘Storybook stuff’: Inside the night Bryce Harper sent the Phillies to the World Series
-
Sports2 years agoGame 1 of WS least-watched in recorded history
-
Sports3 years agoButton battles heat exhaustion in NASCAR debut
-
Sports3 years agoMLB Rank 2023: Ranking baseball’s top 100 players
-
Sports4 years ago
Team Europe easily wins 4th straight Laver Cup
-
Environment2 years agoJapan and South Korea have a lot at stake in a free and open South China Sea
-
Environment1 year agoHere are the best electric bikes you can buy at every price level in October 2024