Ireland’s foreign minister has warned Boris Johnson not to resort to a hardening of his position on the post-Brexit arrangements for Northern Ireland in a bid to shore up support among members of his bitterly divided Conservative Party.
Simon Coveney voiced concerns over the possibility of Britain’s embattled prime minister using the contentious Northern Ireland Protocol to appeal to the 41 per cent of Tory MPs who said they had no confidence in his leadership.
In a crunch vote on Monday evening, 148 Conservative lawmakers said they had lost faith in Mr Johnson, while 211 said they maintained confidence in him.
The result came as a blow to Downing Street and sparked renewed calls for the prime minister to step down over the “partygate scandal,” which saw him fined for breaking the Covid-19 lockdown rules he had introduced.
The Irish government is “concerned” about the impact deep divisions in Britain’s ruling Conservative Party could have across the water, Mr Coveney said on Tuesday.
“If those divisions within the Conservative Party impact on Ireland, because the prime minister or the British government decides in order to maintain support within the party that they have to take a tougher line on Brexit, or on the Northern Ireland Protocol, well then obviously divisions in the Conservative Party and in the British government impact on Ireland,” Mr Coveney said.
"And of course, that's where we have a concern."
The Northern Ireland Protocol, a key part of the post-Brexit agreement Mr Johnson negotiated with the EU, aims to prevent a return to a hard border between the UK nation and the Republic. The clause stipulates that checks must be carried out on goods arriving being transported between Northern Ireland and other parts of the UK.
Britain has for months been at loggerheads with the EU over the protocol, arguing it is creating problems and needs to be amended. Brussels is refusing to budge on the issue.
Speaking to RTE Radio, Mr Coveney warned Mr Johnson against using the protocol as a tool to appeal to lawmakers in his party who have lost faith in him.
“So whoever is the British prime minister, we will work with them, of course, but what we don't want to see is Ireland being part of a strategy to maintain support within the Conservative Party in the context of hardening a position on the Northern Ireland Protocol,” Mr Coveney said.
Opposition to that pact has seen the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) block efforts to restore power sharing in the region.
Britain’s Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said the UK intends to legislate to override parts of the deal on Northern Ireland.
Mr Coveney said the EU wants “serious” negotiations and is willing to compromise and show flexibility.
He said he hoped planned legislation to override parts of the Northern Ireland Protocol would not become the “price” of Conservative Party support for Mr Johnson.
All eyes were on Number 10 on Tuesday morning as members of Mr Johnson’s Cabinet arrived for their first meeting following the vote of confidence.
In a bid to draw attention to the future, Mr Johnson spoke about “driving reform” and “cutting costs” at the gathering.
He hailed the “huge investment that we are making” before adding: “But it’s not enough just to spend money. We have got to spend it wisely.
“We as Conservative ministers, we have got to make sure at every stage that we are driving reform and driving value.
“So what I’m going to ask you all to do in each of your departments is make sure that you’re thinking the whole time about cutting the costs of government, about cutting the costs that business has to face and of course cutting the costs that everybody else faces, families up and down the country.”
He also thanked his Cabinet members for supporting him in the vote.
Tributes from the UAE's personal finance community
• Sebastien Aguilar, who heads SimplyFI.org, a non-profit community where people learn to invest Bogleheads’ style
“It is thanks to Jack Bogle’s work that this community exists and thanks to his work that many investors now get the full benefits of long term, buy and hold stock market investing.
Compared to the industry, investing using the common sense approach of a Boglehead saves a lot in costs and guarantees higher returns than the average actively managed fund over the long term.
From a personal perspective, learning how to invest using Bogle’s approach was a turning point in my life. I quickly realised there was no point chasing returns and paying expensive advisers or platforms. Once money is taken care off, you can work on what truly matters, such as family, relationships or other projects. I owe Jack Bogle for that.”
• Sam Instone, director of financial advisory firm AES International
"Thought to have saved investors over a trillion dollars, Jack Bogle’s ideas truly changed the way the world invests. Shaped by his own personal experiences, his philosophy and basic rules for investors challenged the status quo of a self-interested global industry and eventually prevailed. Loathed by many big companies and commission-driven salespeople, he has transformed the way well-informed investors and professional advisers make decisions."
• Demos Kyprianou, a board member of SimplyFI.org
"Jack Bogle for me was a rebel, a revolutionary who changed the industry and gave the little guy like me, a chance. He was also a mentor who inspired me to take the leap and take control of my own finances."
• Steve Cronin, founder of DeadSimpleSaving.com
"Obsessed with reducing fees, Jack Bogle structured Vanguard to be owned by its clients – that way the priority would be fee minimisation for clients rather than profit maximisation for the company.
His real gift to us has been the ability to invest in the stock market (buy and hold for the long term) rather than be forced to speculate (try to make profits in the shorter term) or even worse have others speculate on our behalf.
Bogle has given countless investors the ability to get on with their life while growing their wealth in the background as fast as possible. The Financial Independence movement would barely exist without this."
• Zach Holz, who blogs about financial independence at The Happiest Teacher
"Jack Bogle was one of the greatest forces for wealth democratisation the world has ever seen. He allowed people a way to be free from the parasitical "financial advisers" whose only real concern are the fat fees they get from selling you over-complicated "products" that have caused millions of people all around the world real harm.”
• Tuan Phan, a board member of SimplyFI.org
"In an industry that’s synonymous with greed, Jack Bogle was a lone wolf, swimming against the tide. When others were incentivised to enrich themselves, he stood by the ‘fiduciary’ standard – something that is badly needed in the financial industry of the UAE."
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