The political judgement of UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak has come under fire, after a planned meeting between European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen and King Charles III was

cancelled. The meeting was expected to take place at Windsor Castle on Saturday, amid rumours that a deal to address issues with the Northern Ireland Protocol was close.

The Northern Ireland Protocol was negotiated prior to the UK’s departure from the EU, and the British government has since sought changes to the agreement. The protocol is a trading arrangement that seeks to avoid a hard border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.

The reported arrangements for the meeting between Ms Von der Leyen and the king led to speculation that any protocol agreement could be named the “Windsor Agreement”. However, government sources confirmed that the trip was cancelled, and it is likely that Downing Street and Buckingham Palace worked together on the decision.

Critics of Mr Sunak argue that the cancellation of the meeting raises questions about his handling of the protocol negotiations. Conservative Eurosceptic and former business secretary Jacob Rees-Mogg told The Times that the planned meeting with the king was “on the borderline of constitutional propriety”.

Mr Sunak is seeking to gain support from Conservative MPs and the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) for any potential protocol reform, as he looks to restore power-sharing in Northern Ireland. The DUP is currently refusing to participate in Stormont’s cross-community devolved government, in protest against the impact of the Brexit treaty on trade between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK.

Former DUP deputy leader Lord Dodds argued that meeting with Ms Von der Leyen would have politicised the monarch, and suggested that the reports “reinforce the questions about Downing Street’s political judgment over the protocol”. DUP MP Sammy Wilson stated that any meeting between the EU leader and the king would have been a “cynical use” of the monarch’s position, and would have been seen in Unionist circles as an endorsement of the deal.

Mr Wilson also criticised the Prime Minister, accusing him of “dragging the king into a hugely controversial political issue”, and suggesting that Mr Sunak’s failure to achieve his objectives in the protocol negotiations was behind the decision to arrange the meeting.

The cancellation of the meeting raises broader questions about the ongoing tensions between the UK and the EU over the Northern Ireland Protocol. While both sides have expressed a desire to find a solution to the issues, there remains a lack of agreement on the best way to do so.

As negotiations continue, it will be important for political leaders on both sides to demonstrate strong judgement and a willingness to compromise. Any resolution to the protocol issue will require careful consideration of the concerns of all parties involved, as well as a commitment to finding a sustainable and workable solution. Photo by HM Treasury, Wikimedia commons.