Like others, I welcome the oral statement this afternoon. I welcome the opportunity to debate and discuss the issues that have arisen, both from the meetings last week but also the wider issues of relationships in these islands. Like others who have spoken this afternoon, I also agree that the council is a good opportunity for us not just to root and deepen peace in the islands of the British isles, but also to learn from each other. And, certainly, as a past participant myself, I can certainly say that I learned a great deal from colleague Ministers in other administrations. But, you also met, First Minister, last week, at an extraordinarily difficult time in relations between these islands. I think that anyone who followed the debate and the discussion around the Northern Ireland protocol has seen nothing in the last year of its operation that was either unexpected, not predicted or in any way surprising. And the failure of UK policy in this field is a profoundly troubling matter for us all.

But, in terms of the place of Northern Ireland, of course, it does have a direct effect on the politics and policy of this place, because if we agree common frameworks that include the territory of Northern Ireland, and if Northern Ireland is following mainstream European regulations, then it is difficult to see how a common framework that includes Northern Ireland can vary itself from—