The Northern Ireland secretary has denied the UK government’s relationship with the European Union was a factor in his decision on the Stormont brake.
Hilary Benn also said he had no concerns that refusing to use the post-Brexit mechanism would destabilise power sharing.
The secretary of state said although the request from Stormont’s unionist parties was rejected, the process was “working”.
All eligible unionist assembly members backed a Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) motion to pull the brake in a bid to stop changes to EU rules on packaging and labelling of chemicals.
DUP leader Gavin Robinson told BBC Newsline he was disappointed, but that the government is now taking action because of the unionist move to pull the brake.
He said they government have “taken steps today to ensure there is no divergence” in the UK’s internal market.
“Fundamentally, that is what is important to us,” he added.
Other unionist politicians have criticised the government’s decision while First Minister, and Sinn Féin vice-president, Michelle O’Neill called for pragmatism.
The brake formed part of an overall package of measures – known as the Windsor Framework – agreed by the UK and EU two years ago, aimed at resolving problems with post-Brexit trade arrangements in Northern Ireland.
The framework is the special Brexit deal that applies to Northern Ireland and means it continues to follow some EU laws relating to goods.
The brake was designed to give Stormont’s politicians a greater say before any amended EU rules could take effect in Northern Ireland.
Analysis: No threat to power sharing
by BBC News NI Political Editor Enda McClafferty:
It is another post-Brexit defeat for unionism, only this time there is no rush to apply the brake on Stormont.
Statements from the DUP and Ulster Unionist party focus their anger at the secretary of state, but they stop short of threatening the institutions.
There is no desire anymore to escalate such a crisis and place power sharing in jeopardy.
Instead they will continue to challenge and test such mechanisms at every opportunity even if it means fighting battles they may lose.
‘Specific test wasn’t met’
The UK government, which is responsible for deciding whether to formally trigger the brake, concluded the tests for using the brake had not been met.
Benn outlined the decision in a seven-page letter to Speaker of the Northern Ireland Assembly, Edwin Poots.
It said the EU rules being challenged do not meet the threshold of having a “significant impact specific to everyday life of communities in Northern Ireland in a way that is liable to persist”.
Speaking to BBC Newsline, the Northern Ireland secretary said there would now be a consultation to “ensure that there isn’t a regulatory problem so that people in Northern Ireland can continue to get the chemicals they want”.
He added that the move to trigger the brake, and the government deciding not to, showed that the process worked as “a concern has been expressed, I have taken note of that”.
“Although the specific test wasn’t met, because that is a very significant one, we are going to look to make sure that there isn’t going to be a problem.”
Benn said in making his decision, he did not take into account what effect it would have on relations with the European Union.
He said that “in the end we want there to be a closer relationship with the European Union”, and that it was “something that I hope everybody in Northern Ireland would support”.
On the stability of Northern Ireland’s devolved institutions, Benn said he did not think his Stormont brake decision would have an impact.
What have Northern Ireland parties said?
The DUP leader told BBC Newsline that he was disappointed in Benn’s decision but said the government had made a commitment that divergence in rules between Great Britain and Northern Ireland “will not materialise”.
“You know the scale of this issue,” he said. “£1bn worth of trade from Great Britain to Northern Ireland each and every year, concerns raised by he Chemical Industry Authority and others about the issues divergence would create,” he added.
Robinson said it was right for unionist assembly members to use the brake mechanism and that they would use it again.
First Minister Michelle O’Neill called for pragmatism “instead of grandstanding or trying to be overtly political about it”.
“Let’s not have stop-start – let’s create the stability and the certainty that the business community would require,” the Sinn Féin vice-president said in the assembly.
Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) assembly member Steve Aiken said the government’s decision “fundamentally undermines the safeguards that are supposed to be in place”.
“Northern Ireland is far from being in the ‘best of both worlds’ and Hilary Benn had an opportunity to actually examine the impact of this divergence,” he said.
“He has demonstrably failed at this first hurdle.”
Alliance Party deputy leader Eóin Tennyson warned against the Stormont brake being “abused”.
He added: “Ultimately, it is only through closer alignment and cooperation between the UK and the EU that the impact of Brexit will be mitigated.”
Social Democratic and Labour Party (SDLP) assembly member Matthew O’Toole, leader of the Stormont assembly’s opposition, said debate around the brake was a “distraction”.
“Instead of continual debate around the Stormont brake, we need the secretary of state and the UK government to engage with the EU around a permanent solution that recognises Northern Ireland’s unique position and allows us to make the most of dual-market access,” he said.
Traditional Unionist Voice (TUV) leader Jim Allister said the decision was “not just a calculated slap in the face of all democrats but creates a moment of truth for the DUP”.
He added: “It’s time to call time on the executive and the DUP’s implementation of EU rule.”
What is the Stormont brake?
The framework is the special Brexit deal that applies to Northern Ireland and means it continues to follow some EU laws relating to goods.
The brake was designed to give Stormont’s politicians a greater say before any amended EU rules could take effect in Northern Ireland.
Entirely new rules are dealt with under a similar process known as an applicability motion.
The brake can only be used in the “most exceptional circumstances and as a matter of last resort”.
The mechanism also cannot be used for “trivial” reasons and those seeking for it to be pulled must demonstrate that the rule being challenged is having a “significant” impact on everyday life in Northern Ireland.
What if the Stormont brake had been pulled?
If the government had determined the conditions were met, it would have formally notified the EU and the changed law would not apply.
There would then have been “intensive consultation” between the UK and EU.
The Joint Committee – the UK-EU body responsible for overseeing the Brexit deal – would be required to discuss the rule in question.
Once those discussions concluded, the UK government could either send it back to the assembly for a cross-community vote or decide the rule should not apply in Northern Ireland.
At that stage, the government could still avoid a Stormont vote if it assessed there were “exceptional circumstances” including an assessment that the rule would not create a new regulatory border between Great Britain and Northern Ireland.
If the UK decided not to adopt the rule, the EU could take “appropriate remedial measures”, which could include measures to address the fact that Northern Ireland goods may no long fully comply with EU law.
