EU and UK Reach Agreement on Replacing Northern Ireland Protocol with Windsor Framework

UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has announced a "decisive breakthrough" on post-Brexit trading arrangements.

The breakthrough was achieved following successful negotiations with EU chief Ursula von der Leyen. The new "Windsor Framework" is designed to ease the trading issues created by the Northern Ireland Protocol, which has created trade barriers between Northern Ireland and Great Britain.

Food available on supermarket shelves in Great Britain, will be available in Northern Ireland.

The new deal is expected to include check-free lanes for goods coming from GB into Northern Ireland and aims to deliver smooth-flowing trade within the whole United Kingdom, protect Northern Ireland's place in the union and safeguard sovereignty for the people of Northern Ireland.

The DUP's support will be key in convincing Conservative Brexiteers to back the deal, and DUP leader Jeffrey Donaldson has issued seven tests that the new pact will have to meet to win DUP backing.

Labour has repeatedly said they will support a deal.

The agreement has been welcomed as a positive and encouraging development by Irish Taoiseach Leo Varadkar, who said it would put EU-UK relations and British-Irish relations on a much more solid footing.

The real test will be whether Mr Sunak can "sell it to his backbenchers", according to British Labour leader Keir Starmer, while Conservative Eurosceptic Theresa Villiers has called for MPs to be given a vote on the deal.

The new deal between the UK and the EU includes several measures.

Firstly, there will be separate green and red lanes for trade routes. Goods staying in the UK will use a green lane to avoid customs bureaucracy, while goods going to the EU will use a red lane.

Secondly, UK VAT and excise changes will apply in Northern Ireland. This means that British products such as trees, plants, and seed potatoes will be available in Northern Ireland, and pet travel requirements have been removed.

Thirdly, there will be a "landmark" settlement on medicines, which means that drugs approved for use by the UK's medicines regulator will automatically be available in every pharmacy and hospital in Northern Ireland.

Finally, there will be a new "Stormont brake" which will allow the Northern Ireland government to stop changes in EU goods laws from applying in Northern Ireland. If the brake is used, the UK government will have a veto.