Downing Street denies claims Theresa May wants to amend Good Friday Agreement

Not going to work

Theresa May will try to convince Tory Brexiteers and DUP MPs to back her withdrawal deal by attempting to resolve their Irish backstop concerns. How she will do this is unclear but The Telegraph reported on Sunday night that Theresa May was looking into amending the Good Friday Agreement in an attempt to unblock the Brexit impasse. According to the report, May was considering rewriting the 1998 accord to assure Ireland that the UK is committed to no hard border on the island after the UK leaves the European Union in March. Some in the UK cabinet believe such a plan would avoid having to commit to the Northern Irish backstop, which is the main reason that May's withdrawal plans were rejected resoundingly by the House of Commons last week. However, since it was initially reported by The Telegraph, Senior Ireland Correspondent for Sky News David Blevins has said that Number 10 Downing Street has rejected these claims, because they're not allowed to rewrite the Good Friday Agreement. https://twitter.com/skydavidblevins/status/1087132795636539394 Over the weekend, the Tánaiste (deputy head of government) and Minster for Foreign Affairs Simon Coveney reiterated his belief that the Good Friday Agreement must be protected. https://twitter.com/simoncoveney/status/1086572827518664704?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1086572827518664704&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.thejournal.ie%2Fbrexit-may-good-friday-4450572-Jan2019%2F