EU presses Ireland for no-deal Brexit border plan

Bloomberg

The European Commission is pushing the Irish government to lay out its plans for the border in the event of a no-deal Brexit, a person familiar with the matter said.
Ireland has proved elusive when the Commission has attempted to pin down the government on its plan, according to the person, who spoke on condition of anonymity. A Commission spokesman told reporters in Brussels that a no-deal exit would mean a return of a hard border.
If the UK tumbles out of the bloc in March without a deal, then the question that has dogged Brexit talks — how to avoid a hard border on the island of Ireland — becomes an acute crisis. The Commission intervention could focus minds in Dublin on the potential consequences of sticking by the backstop, a policy which could catapult the UK out of the bloc without a deal.
Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar said his government would “never” build a border, though appears to have stepped back from that stance after it became clear that could mean a de facto frontier emerged between Ireland and the rest of the bloc. This possibility was raised in a government briefing with opposition leaders, broadcaster RTE said.
The EU has made clear that Ireland would be expected to police the border with the UK as it would become the bloc’s external frontier.
On Wednesday, in an interview with RTE, Irish Agriculture Minister Michael Creed repeatedly ruled out the return of hard border “infrastructure” in all circumstances.
That raises the prospect of a light-touch system of checking goods, while maintaining a common travel area with the UK would mean people can continue to move freely across the border.
Varadkar — who has staked his political career on getting Brexit right — said that no-deal would present a “real dilemma.”
Varadkar already faces another dilemma: Back down on Ireland’s demands to make sure the Brexit deal gets approved by the UK Parliament, or risk the possibility of a no-deal scenario that would be almost as damaging to Ireland as it would be to the UK.

‘Brexit extension would need a reason and a plan’
Bloomberg

Any extension of the Brexit process beyond the UK’s March 29 departure date would need a reason and a plan from the government in London, European Union Economic and Monetary Commissioner Pierre Moscovici said.
A delay in the withdrawal date is “a possible scenario,” Moscovici said in a Bloomberg Television interview at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. But for that to happen “we need to know why we extend, what for, what’s the plan?”
he said.
With the prospect of a chaotic no-deal divorce looming as the exit date approaches, the British Parliament is moving closer to a plan to delay the country’s departure.
Prime Minister Theresa May has said she’s against a postponement. Any delay would have ripple effects including continued uncertainty for companies with potential negative effects on investment and growth.