The Northern Ireland protocol is said to be a blight on regional economy. That’s just not true

After an initial shock to businesses, manufacturing jobs are growing four times faster here than the UK average

Whenever Boris Johnson's government wades into battle over the Northern Ireland protocol, it wields one assertion like a broadsword: that the protocol is ruining the region's economy. Checks on goods entering Northern Ireland are disrupting trade, increasing prices and bankrupting businesses, and the damage will worsen unless the protocol is changed, goes the argument.

The Institute of Economic Affairs (IEA), a rightwing thinktank, joined the fray last week with a report that estimated the annual cost of the agreement at 850m.