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Feb. 27 (UPI) -- British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen on Monday announced a deal settling a dispute over trading arrangements for Northern Ireland. "Together, we have changed the original protocol and are today announcing the New Windsor Framework," Sunak said at the joint news conference in Windsor, outside London.
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"Today's agreement delivers smooth-flowing trade from within the whole of the United Kingdom, protects Northern Ireland's place in our union and safeguards sovereignty for the people of Northern Ireland."
The agreement on the Northern Ireland protocol is the culmination of an all-out diplomatic push mounted by Sunak over recent months, and removes a major Brexit stumbling block that has poisoned relations with the European Union and left Northern Ireland effectively without government for the past 10 months.
"It is with a great sense of satisfaction that we stand here together," Von der Leyen said Monday, alongside Sunak, who needs to hold a Cabinet meeting before going to parliament to make a House of Commons statement.
Any vote on the deal is unlikely before next week in order to allow lawmakers sufficient time to digest the agreement's legal text.
"The Windsor Framework lays down new arrangements on Ireland, Northern Ireland. This new framework will allow us to begin a new chapter. It provides for long-lasting solutions that both of us are confident will work for all people and businesses in Northern Ireland," Von der Leyen told reporters, pointing to a pair of examples.
"The New Windsor Framework will ensure that the same food will be available on supermarket shelves in Northern Ireland as in the rest of the U.K. And furthermore, the new Windsor framework will permanently enable all medicines, including novel ones, to be available in Northern Ireland at the same time, and at the same conditions across the U.K."
Talks were held in Windsor, where in illustration of the importance of the breakthrough, Von der Leyen will meet with King Charles III later in the day. However, that news ignited a fresh row over involving the monarchy -- which normally remains neutral -- in politics.
Buckingham Palace confirmed the two will meet for tea at Windsor Castle, while Von der Leyen said they will not be discussing the new agreement.
The protocol, designed to avoid a hard land border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, which is part of the EU, moves the border with the EU to the middle of the Irish Sea instead -- preventing free movement of goods from other parts of Britain.
Northern Ireland's Democratic Unionist Party has refused to participate in a power-sharing government with Sinn Fein, the largest party, since May in protest over the protocol, arguing it treats Northern Ireland differently than other parts of Britain.
The protocol gives the European Court of Justice the final say in disputes over the protocol, a role the DUP also wants ended, along with Euro-skeptics within the ruling Conservative Party in London.
The court's role will remain in place for issues related to single-market issues.
Creation of a new Stormont, Northern Ireland's devolved legislature, will have a "brake" lever, with the ability to block any new laws from being imposed on it.
"We're introducing a new Stormont Brake," Sunak tweeted, following the announcement.
"The elected Assembly can pull the brake for changes to EU goods rules that would have significant and lasting effects on everyday lives. When pulled, the U.K. government will have a veto. This gives Northern Ireland a powerful safeguard."
Sunak has faced backlash from his own Conservative Party, demanding Northern Ireland be treated in exactly the same way as the rest of the United Kingdom where the laws in Northern Ireland are British laws, not EU laws.
"We are putting also in place several mechanisms that should avoid having to resort to the 'Stormont Brake' which is an emergency mechanism," Von der Leyen said Monday.
The two leaders did not release a full slate of terms, but the deal on the table would see a customs check-free "green" lane for goods destined for Northern Ireland and a "red" lane for goods passing through the province en route to the Irish Republic and establish an arbitration panel made up of Northern Ireland and EU judges.
The panel would try to settle disputes in the first instance, avoiding the involvement of the ECJ in most cases.
It remains uncertain if the DUP and so-called Brexiteers in the ruling Conservative Party will support it.
The Irish News reported the DUP was expected to accept the protocol deal.
But leader Jeffrey Donaldson said in a Twitter post, "We'll take our time to consider the detail and measure a deal against our seven tests."
Mark Francois, chairman of the Conservative Party's Euro-skeptic European Research Group said EU law must be "expunged" from Northern Ireland.
Former Northern Ireland Secretary Theresa Villiers, who campaigned for Britain to leave the EU, said it was "crucial parliament has a vote."
