Northern Ireland could ‘DISAPPEAR’ if DUP doesn’t back May’s Brexit deal – minister warns
NORTHERN IRELAND could “disappear” from the United Kingdom and reunite with the Republic of Ireland if the DUP doesn’t back Theresa May’s deal, a Cabinet minister has claimed.
Brexit: May's deal 'breaks up' the UK says DUP's Sammy Wilson
The Sun quoted one Cabinet minister issuing a warning to the ultra-conservative lawmakers about the “existential threat” facing them as they continue to dig their heels in over the backstop.
The minister said: “If it’s no deal, there’ll be a border poll and Northern Ireland will disappear.
“If there’s a general election and Corbyn wins, the same.
“It’s time they woke up and smelt the coffee. They’re facing an existential threat today.”
Last night the DUP’s Westminster leader Nigel Dodds said his MPs would only vote for the Withdrawal Agreement if Mrs May changed the backstop arrangement.
The DUP is staunchly against the terms of the backstop which include no time limit on the insurance policy and different regulations for Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK.
Mr Dodds said: “We regret the fact that we weren’t able to get to a position to support the Withdrawal Agreement.
“The fact of the matter is that had there been legally binding changes at treaty level then we could have been in business.”
Brexit: Arlene Foster wants deal that is 'good for the whole UK'
Party leader Arlene Foster said the DUP “cannot sign up to something that would damage the union”.
The backtracking by many Eurosceptics this week came after the Prime Minister bowed to their demands and announced on Wednesday that she would step down in the summer.
Earlier this month a poll commissioned for the Irish Times and Ipsos MRBI showed the majority of people living in Northern Ireland do not want a hard Brexit and would prefer to see checks on goods being transported between the North and Great Britain rather than at the Irish border.
The same poll carried out in the Republic found the majority of voters want to see a referendum on Irish unity, with 62 percent saying they would vote for reunification.
Sixty-seven percent of those interviewed in the North felt the DUP was doing a lousy job representing them in Westminster.