A former minister has played down expectations of how far a new Northern Ireland Brexit deal will go, saying there will be “unanswered questions”.
Sir Robert Buckland, former Wales secretary and justice secretary, told Sky News it “does look like the British government and the EU have agreed a deal”.
Meanwhile, Labour leader Sir Keir Starmer reaffirmed his party’s support for an enhanced deal, saying “we’ve been working on these problems for a very, very long time and know what some of the solutions are.”
Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has been in talks with the EU over the past few weeks to try to settle the significant issues the Northern Ireland Protocol has brought for trade in the nation after the UK left the EU three years ago.
He and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen are set to make an announcement this afternoon if a final deal can be agreed following further talks today.
Sir Robert, who is on the Commons’ Northern Ireland affairs committee, told Sky News’ Kay Burley at Breakfast programme: “We mustn’t let the perfect be the enemy of the good.
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“I’m sure that this deal will probably have some unanswered questions and maybe not solve all the issues in one fell swoop.
“But it does sound as if it’s going to be a big step forward.”
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He added that if that is the case the government will not have to take “unilateral action”, in reference to the Northern Ireland Protocol Bill introduced by Boris Johnson that rode over the deal he agreed with the EU but has been paused by Mr Sunak.
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Sir Robert Buckland: ‘We’re going to hear a lot of opinions’
On why Mr Sunak appears to have got further than his three predecessors in agreeing a deal that benefits both the EU and the UK, Sir Robert said: “This prime minister has been able to create a relationship of trust.
“I think it’s about personalities, this isn’t a reflection on previous prime ministers but if you get on well with people and win their trust then I think, in all our experiences, more business can be done.
“I think the relationship with the French president has probably improved, I think there is that willingness.”
What could be in the new Northern Ireland deal?
Westminster, not the EU, could set VAT rates and state subsidies for Northern Ireland
EU can access real-time UK data on trade flows across the Irish Sea
Brussels must give UK notice of future EU regulations intended for Northern Ireland – Stormont can lodge an objection and the EU can disapply that regulation
If the EU objects, Northern Ireland courts can rule on EU regulation implementation before Brussels has a say
Scaling back of the role of the European Court of Justice
Will there be a vote on the deal?
Both Tory and Labour MPs have been given a three-line whip for today, meaning they face suspension from their parties if they do not turn up in parliament.
This has prompted speculation there will be a vote by MPs on the expected deal.
Sir Robert said there “technically” does not have to be a vote because the EU Withdrawal Act allows for deals to have a “direct effect”.
However, he said: “I think there’ll be some sort of vote.”
Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey also said he expects there will be a vote.
“He doesn’t need to take it to parliament, he doesn’t absolutely need to in terms of the constitution,” he told Sky News’ Kay Burley at Breakfast.
“But I think politically he needs to, I think most MPs, if not all MPs, and certainly voters would think it extraordinary for him to do this huge deal and not allow the electorate anticipating his representatives to have a say.”
Donald Trump has criticised Vladimir Putin and suggested a shift in his stance towards the Russian president after a meeting with Volodymyr Zelenskyy before the Pope’s funeral.
The Ukrainian president said the one-on-one talks could prove to be “historic” after pictures showed him sitting opposite Mr Trump, around two feet apart, in the large marble hall inside St Peter’s Basilica.
The US president said he doubted his Russian counterpart’s willingness to end the war after leaving Rome after the funeral of Pope Francis at the Vatican.
In a post on his Truth Social platform, he said “there was no reason” for the Russian president “to be shooting missiles into civilian areas, cities and towns, over the last few days”.
Image: The two leaders held talks before attending the Pope’s funeral
He added: “It makes me think that maybe he doesn’t want to stop the war, he’s just tapping me along, and has to be dealt with differently, through ‘Banking’ or ‘Secondary Sanctions?’ Too many people are dying!!!”
The meeting between the US and Ukrainian leaders was their first face-to-face encounter since a very public row in the Oval Office in February.
Mr Zelenskyy said he had a good meeting with Mr Trump in which they talked about the defence of the Ukrainian people, a full and unconditional ceasefire, and a durable and lasting peace that would prevent the war restarting.
Other images released by the Ukrainian president’s office show Sir Keir Starmer and French President Emmanuel Macron were present for part of the talks, which were described as “positive” by the French presidency.
Mr Zelenskyy‘s spokesman said the meeting lasted for around 15 minutes and he and Mr Trump had agreed to hold further discussions later on Saturday.
Image: The world leaders shared a moment before the service
Image: Donald Trump and Volodymyr Zelenskyy meet in the Basilica
But the US president left Rome for Washington on Air Force One soon after the funeral without any other talks having taken place.
The Ukrainian president’s office said there was no second meeting in Rome because of the tight schedule of both leaders, although he had separate discussions with Mr Starmer and Mr Macron.
The French president said in a post on X “Ukraine is ready for an unconditional ceasefire” and that a so-called coalition of the willing, led by the UK and France, would continue working to achieve a lasting peace.
There was applause from some of the other world leaders in attendance at the Vatican when Mr Zelenskyy walked out of St Peter’s Basilica after stopping in front of the pontiff’s coffin to pay his respects.
Image: Donald Trump and the Ukrainian president met for the first time since their Oval Office row. Pic: Reuters
Sir Tony Brenton, the former British ambassador to Russia, said the event presents diplomatic opportunities, including the “biggest possible meeting” between Mr Trump and the Ukrainian leader.
He told Sky News it could mark “an important step” in starting the peace process between Russia and Ukraine.
Professor Father Francesco Giordano told Sky News the meeting is being called “Pope Francis’s miracle” by members of the clergy, adding: “There’s so many things that happened today – it was just overwhelming.”
The bilateral meeting comes after Mr Trump’s peace negotiator Steve Witkoff held talks with Mr Putin at the Kremlin.
They discussed “the possibility of resuming direct negotiations between Russia and Ukraine”, Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov said.
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On an extraordinary day, remarkable pictures on the margins that capture what may be a turning point for the world.
In a corner of St Peter’s Basilica before the funeral of Pope Francis, the leaders of America and Ukraine sit facing each other in two solitary chairs.
They look like confessor and sinner except we cannot tell which one is which.
In another, the Ukrainian president seems to be remonstrating with the US president. This is their first encounter since their infamous bust-up in the Oval Office.
Image: The two leaders held talks before attending the Pope’s funeral
Other pictures show the moment their French and British counterparts introduced the two men. There is a palpable sense of nervousness in the way the leaders engage.
We do not know what the two presidents said in their brief meeting.
But in the mind of the Ukrainian leader will be the knowledge President Trump has this week said America will reward Russia for its unprovoked brutal invasion of his country, under any peace deal.
Mr Trump has presented Ukraine and Russia with a proposal and ultimatum so one-sided it could have been written in the Kremlin.
Kyiv must surrender the land Russia has taken by force, Crimea forever, the rest at least for now. And it must submit to an act of extortion, a proposed deal that would hand over half its mineral wealth effectively to America.
Image: The world leaders shared a moment before the service
Afterwards, Zelenskyy said it had been a good meeting that could turn out to be historic “if we reach results together”.
They had talked, he said, about the defence of Ukraine, a full and unconditional ceasefire and a durable and lasting peace that will prevent a war restarting.
The Trump peace proposal includes only unspecified security guarantees for Ukraine from countries that do not include the US. It rules out any membership of Ukraine.
Ukraine’s allies are watching closely to see if Mr Trump will apply any pressure on Vladimir Putin, let alone punish him for recent bloody attacks on Ukraine.
Or will he simply walk away if the proposal fails, blaming Ukrainian intransigence, however outrageously, before moving onto a rapprochement with Moscow.
If he does, America’s role as guarantor of international security will be seen effectively as over.
This could be the week we see the world order as we have known it since the end of the Second World War buried, as well as a pope.