PM Rishi Sunak’s government hopes the new rules will help solve some of the nagging issue Brexit has caused | Photo: Financial Times

The British House of Commons will begin debating post-Brexit trade rules for Northern Ireland today.

While British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak aims to implement the rules to cement the future of cross border trade between EU member Ireland and Northern Ireland, they have attracted opposition from the more conservative elements in Britain —such as former PM Boris Johnson and the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) in Northern Ireland. Sunak’s government aims to implement the overall framework of trade rules without a vote. However, the House of Commons will vote to approve the “Stormont Brake”, a measure that allows for a suspension of EU trade rules in Northern Ireland if approved by a third of parliamentarians in Northern Ireland.

While the opposition Labor Party supports the measure—almost guaranteeing it will pass a vote in parliament, the vote will be a test of Sunak’s influence within his own party. Almost unanimous backing of the deal would cement Sunak’s leadership of the Tory Party while a large amount of no-votes might put his leadership into question and put him in a similar position to his predecessor Liz Truss.