Sinn Féin Leas Uachtarán and Joint Head of Government Michelle O’Neill MLA spoke to the new British Secretary of State and made it clear to him that his government must live up to its commitments. 

Michelle O’Neill said: 

“Today we had our first engagement with new British Secretary of State Brandon Lewis to discuss a range of issues and matters of concern. 

“I reminded him of the commitments made by his government in the New Decade, New Approach document and how the British government have acted in bad faith in relation to the financial commitments made in the document. 

“In particular there are issues around legacy and the fact is we have had no detail from the British movement on the legacy legislation that it committed to bringing forward. 

“We also discussed the Brexit trade negotiation proposal published by the British government today.

“I made it very clear to him that our priority is the need to protect the all-Ireland economy and that the protections agreed in the Irish Protocol of the Withdrawal Agreement need to be adhered to and implemented. 

“What we have had from the British government on Brexit time and time again is rhetoric and what we need to see is action and delivery which prevents a hard border and protects our economy east west and north south.”