Lord Dodds of Duncairn (DUP)

My Lords, I am grateful for this opportunity to speak in the gap. I want first of all to join with the noble Baroness, Lady Hoey, in her remarks about the incident in north Belfast—the area I had the honour to represent in the other place for almost 20 years—and totally endorse what she said about that horrific incident. I also want to congratulate her on bringing this SI debate forward, because without this regret Motion we would not be able to debate the matter and hear the contributions of noble Lords. The noble Lord, Lord Davies, asked what this was about in terms of Northern Ireland. Paragraph 13.1 of the Explanatory Memorandum states that this SI “does … relate to the withdrawal of the UK from the EU”. On its relevance to Northern Ireland, paragraph 4.2 states that it is bringing the law “into line with Great Britain’s requirements … This alignment is intended to maintain regulatory consistency with the European Union, as well as Northern Ireland further to the Windsor Framework Agreement”. So it is relevant, as set out in the Government’s Explanatory Memorandum, because otherwise they would not have mentioned those issues. Of course it is relevant, because this legislation has been the law in Northern Ireland since 4 March 2025. Nobody in Stormont debated it, nobody in the other place debated it, and nobody in this House debated it, but it has been the law in part of the United Kingdom for many months—for over a year. The noble Baroness, Lady Hoey, has raised important issues about the expense and the extra costs, and I hope the Minister will respond. But whatever your views on this SI, whether you think it is a good thing or a bad thing in substance, the important point is that people in Great Britain have the opportunity to debate it and decide. In Northern Ireland, we are not afforded that luxury at all. It has been imposed upon us—and that is the point the noble Baroness has sought to bring forward. It is a matter that should be of fundamental concern to every democrat in the United Kingdom, not just those in Northern Ireland. It should concern legislators in Northern Ireland, it should concern legislators elected to the other place, and it should concern us here. Why on earth do people want a situation where a form of colonialism is going on? This SI affords us the opportunity to bring that out. As for aligning, I have the utmost respect for what the noble Baroness who spoke previously said, but as the noble Baroness, Lady Hoey, pointed out, aligning piecemeal, bit by bit, here and there, does not solve the problem of the trade arrangements with Northern Ireland. It leaves in place the customs barrier and the distinct situation whereby Northern Ireland is subject to laws across 300 areas of our economy and wider, made by a foreign political entity in its interest and imposed on the people of Northern Ireland. I congratulate the noble Baroness and thank her for bringing this matter to our attention.