Customs union only way to prevent hard border in Ireland, says Major

Brexiters must recognise the 'collateral damage' leaving the EU will cause in Northern Ireland, says former PM

Sir John Major has warned that a hard border in Ireland will be unavoidable unless Brexiters start to take on board the "collateral damage" that exiting the EU will cause in Northern Ireland.

He said that the words "customs union" had become "toxic" and that efforts to find an alternative solution to the border amounted to "limp promises".

Counties and customs

A customs union is an agreement by a group of countries, such as the EU, to all apply the same tariffs on imported goods from the rest of the world and, typically, eliminate them entirely for trade within the group. By doing this, they can help avoid the need for costly and time-consuming customs checks during trade between members of the union. Asian shipping containers arriving at Felixstowe or Rotterdam, for example, need only pass through customs once before their contents head to markets all over Europe. Lorries passing between Dover and Calais avoid delay entirely.

Related: Brexit plan drawn up for border checks between NI and rest of UK