Tom Sharpe KC was invited to give evidence to the House of Commons European Scrutiny Committee on 1 February 2023. The Committee’s focus was on the Northern Ireland Protocol.
Quite apart from the practical issues of trade, Tom’s evidence dealt with the “democratic deficit” of Northern Ireland being subject to existing EU law and any future relevant changes in the law owing to the “dynamic alignment” of Northern Ireland. He foresaw that this would be a major stumbling block in any renegotiation as Northern Ireland would have no voice in the law-making process and the EU would be very reluctant to carve out any exception to allow Northern Ireland to modify or exempt applicable laws.
The session can be viewed here.