The EU published some guidance to address some of the issues Brexit raises for the island of Ireland with Michel Barnier saying that what he sees in the UK’s paper on Ireland “worries” him.

In a warning to the UK not to use Ireland as a test case for future customs arrangements, the chief EU negotiator said “And the UK wants to use Ireland as a kind of test case for the future EU-UK customs relations. This will not happen. Creativity and flexibility cannot be at the expense of the integrity of the Single Market and the Customs Union. This would not be fair for Ireland and it would not be fair for the European Union.”

The four page paper does not offer any solutions; rather it asks the UK to consider a list of issues including coming up with solutions for the border, honouring commitments under the Good Friday Agreement and keeping the Common Travel Area. These matters don’t include detail on customs or the border as these important items are planned for discussion in the October talks.