Following comments by the Northern Ireland Secretary that a new Bill to amend the UK's Brexit deal with the EU will "break international law in a specific and limited way", Chair of the Bar Council, Amanda Pinto QC said:
“We share widespread concern about the Government’s stated intention to break international law in publishing new legislation on customs rules in Northern Ireland today. It should not need to be said that this country is built on, and subject to, the rule of law. Undermining this vital principle will fatally puncture people’s faith in our justice system, both at home and internationally. Someone committing a crime in a in a "specific and limited way” nonetheless commits a crime, and an admitted breach of international law in a "specific and limited way” is nonetheless a breach.”
ENDS