Why Northern Ireland Keeps the UK and Europe at Odds: QuickTake

Ever since the UK left the European Union in 2020, trading arrangements for Northern Ireland have remained a bone of contention. The UK government says the current regime, known as the Northern Ireland Protocol, is stifling trade between the region and Great Britain and has threatened to unilaterally rewrite the agreement. A stalemate over the issue has further polarized Northern Ireland’s fractious politics and left it without a functioning regional government. By January, it appeared that the two sides were edging closerto a workable solution.

1. What is the protocol?

It’s an arrangement to keep goods moving between ...