[Sephiroth]

Originally Posted by jonbxx

No, it would have been an act of Ireland as a signatory of the Treaty of Lisbon. There seems to be a misunderstanding here of what the European Union is. The EU can only act with the agreement of the member states. The whole being ruled from Brussels only happens with the consent of the member states and every law and regulation needs the agreement of usually both the Parliament and the nation heads of state.

The EU, having competence over things like customs and standards (again, with the agreement of the nation state of Ireland) paid due regard to Irelands position as a signator of the Belfast/Good Friday Agreement, hence the fudge of the Northern Ireland protocol agreed by all parties

The EU would have insisted on a hard border due to the customs/single market but instead succeeded in passing the buck to us.
The EU would have forced Eire to apply a border had we walked away.