PM call with Chancellor Merkel: 22 July 2021

The Prime Minister spoke with German Chancellor Angela Merkel this afternoon.

He began by expressing his condolences for the terrible loss of life in the recent floods in Germany. The leaders agreed on the importance of tackling climate change to prevent these kinds of extreme weather events and the devastation they cause.

On the Northern Ireland Protocol, the Prime Minister said that the disruption being caused to people and businesses in Northern Ireland by the current operation of the Protocol was not sustainable.

He explained that the Protocol was failing to deliver on many of its intended objectives: to minimise disruption to everyday lives, to respect Northern Ireland’s integral place in the UK’s internal market, and to preserve the delicate balance in the (Belfast) Good Friday Agreement in all its dimensions.

The Prime Minister underlined that solutions could not be found through the existing mechanisms of the Protocol and that was why we had set out proposals for significant changes to it. He urged the Chancellor and the EU collectively to engage in a constructive and detailed discussion on the UK’s proposals.

Both leaders agreed to remain in touch.