Rishi Sunak handed EU fix to solve the Brexit hated bill

Prime Minister Rishi Sunak could solve the Northern Ireland Protocol issue by re-joining the European Union’s Single Market in a bid to scrap the Irish Sea border checks, Brexit researchers said. Inside the EU Single Market, the border checks between Northern Ireland and Great Britain in the Irish Sea would be eliminated. However, going back to the EU’s economic bloc would come with a caveat, researchers warned.Dr Fabian Zuleeg, Chief Executive at the European Policy Centre think tank, told Express.co.uk: “If we’re talking about full reintegration of the UK into the economic system of the European Union, yes it would [solve the Northern Ireland Protocol issue].”It would not resolve the political conflict within Northern Ireland because that is essentially a domestic issue where of course, the European Union is involved because Ireland is a [EU] member state. “But if we’re talking about the economic friction, if we’re talking about the difficulties we have with where a border needs to go – well if you’re part of the same market, you don’t need a border.”Dr Simon Usherwood, a prolific Brexit researcher at the Open University, agreed with the conclusions drawn by Dr Zuleeg.  Rishi Sunak could solve the Northern Ireland Protocol issue with an EU fix (Image: GETTY) Dr Fabian Zuleeg says the Northern Ireland Protocol issue would be solved with the Single Market fix (Image: EXPRESS)Dr Usherwood told Express.co.uk: “If we imagine a situation where the UK was fully back inside the EU Single Market and the Customs Union, you would remove pretty much all the key barriers of the reasons for having the Protocol in place.”Because you would have no needs for checks on goods or people, services, capital – those would be able to move freely between north and south and east and west, as well.”The EU and the UK have been locked over the trade issue since Brexit negotiations began.Since talks started, the EU has insisted there must be a trade border between the UK’s Internal Market and the EU’s Single Market to guarantee the standards of EU goods.READ MORE: Betraying our country isn’t treason anymore – it’s policy Dr Simon Usherwood warned re-joining the Single Market means free movement (Image: EXPRESS) Under the NI Protocol, goods travelling from Great Britain to Northern Ireland must be checked (Image: EXPRESS)But inside the Single Market, Britain would no longer need to carry out checks on goods travelling from Great Britain to Northern Ireland. The Irish Sea checks border would disappear from the map.Lifting border checks in the Irish Sea would not only allow Northern Ireland to form a government but also to open trade with the 27 EU member states – reducing the impact of the cost-of-living crisis on Britons. However, re-joining the single market would also force Britain to guarantee the free movement of people – and cancel the post-Brexit immigration system.British businesses have been calling for that option since the post-Brexit regulations and additional export costs came into force on January 1, 2021. DON’T MISS:Brexit bonfire of EU laws set to go ahead as PM confirms date [REPORT]    Spain demands Brussels changes post-Brexit rules for UK holidaymakers [REPORT]    Clock ticking on Brexit legislation as EU given six week deadline [REPORT]     Rishi Sunak and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen have agreed to work together (Image: GETTY)Rishi Sunak is meeting Irish Prime Minister Micheál Martin in Blackpool on Thursday and Friday ahead of the latest meeting of the British-Irish Council.During the summit of devolved nations, the Prime Minister will try to broker the stalemate in Stormont, which has been blocked since the DUP refused power-sharing on the grounds that the Irish Sea checks are hurting Northern Ireland’s economy. In a potential sign of a breakthrough, Rishi Sunak and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen have agreed to work together to end the Northern Ireland Protocol row. The EU’s Brexit Commissioner Maros Sefcovic said he was “convinced that where there’s a will, there’s a way” to reduce border checks to allow British goods to enter Northern Ireland with ease.He told a meeting of politicians in Westminster: “I believe that our respective positions are not worlds apart if we genuinely explore the EU’s robust proposals. I believe that it could be done and if there is political will, I’m sure that we can sort it out really within a couple of weeks.”READ NEXT:Scholz turns to Rishi for post-Brexit gas deal to swerve blackoutsBrexiteers furious as unions spark new Project ‘Fear’UK businessman warns of major trade risk of scrapping EU lawsBrexiteers warn against delaying deadline for bonfire of EU laws’EU wants UK capitulation’ Brexiteer calls Sefcovic’s bluff