FILE - In this Jan. 22, 2019, file photo, the sun shines through European Union flags tied to railings outside parliament in London. The prospect of restoring a hard border between Ireland and Northern Ireland once Britain leaves the EU has raised fears or a return to the old reality where British army checkpoints, shootings, bombings and gun-smuggling were the norm. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth, File)
The prospect of restoring a hard border between Ireland and Northern Ireland once Britain leaves the EU has raised fears of a return to the old reality where British army checkpoints, shootings, bombings and gun-smuggling were the norm. Now, people and goods flow freely from one to side to the other, greatly adding to stability, trade and economic growth.
Some in Britain's Conservative Party have bristled at Dublin's sway in the European Union and ability to veto any deal that allows a hard border to re-emerge.
Theresa May's office has dismissed reports that the prime minister was thinking of revisiting the terms of the Good Friday agreement. However, May has said that she wants more talks on the "backstop," which proposes to keep the U.K. in a customs union with the EU to avoid checks on the Irish border. It is meant as a temporary measure that would last until a permanent solution is found. But pro-Brexit U.K. lawmakers fear Britain could become trapped in it, indefinitely bound by EU trade rules.
People are also reading…
There are groups who will look to capitalize on the ongoing uncertainty. But those who would seek to derail Northern Ireland's hard-fought road to stability, normality and some prosperity are unlikely to ever gain the type of grassroots support they did when the conflict raged.
Forensic investigators at the scene of a car bomb blast on Bishop Street in Londonderry, Northern Ireland, Sunday, Jan. 20, 2019. Northern Ireland police and politicians have condemned a "reckless" car bombing outside a courthouse in the city of Londonderry. The device was placed inside a hijacked delivery vehicle and exploded Saturday night as police, who had received a warning, were evacuating the area. There were no reports of injuries. (Niall Carson/PA via AP)
