On 20 January 2025 the Secretary of State for Northern Ireland, Hilary Benn, rejected a request made by 35 Unionist-designated Members of the Northern Ireland Assembly (MLAs) to block the application of an updated EU Regulation in Northern Ireland by pulling the Stormont Brake.

This was the first time such a request had been made since it became operational in February 2024.

What is the Stormont Brake?

Some EU laws continue to apply in Northern Ireland under the original Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland, negotiated as part of the agreement settling the UK’s withdrawal from the European Union. This is to ensure there is no “hard border” and no associated customs or regulatory checks on the island of Ireland. When the EU updates these laws, the protocol provides that the updated version applies in Northern Ireland.

In March 2023, the EU and the UK agreed changes to the protocol. The revised protocol, now referred to as the Windsor Framework, introduced the ‘Stormont Brake’, a new mechanism to give MLAs the opportunity to formally object to the automatic application of an updated EU law in Northern Ireland. However, the final decision to ‘pull the brake’ and prevent the application of an updated EU law in Northern Ireland rests with the UK Government.

The Stormont Brake only became operational with the restoration of the Northern Ireland Executive and Assembly in February 2024, and this is the first time MLAs have requested it be used.

Why did MLAs seek to pull the brake?

In a written notification sent to the Speaker of the Assembly in December 2024, 35 MLAs explained that they were seeking to block the application of Regulation (EU) 2024/2865 because they argued it would have a significant negative impact on Northern Ireland. This regulation updates an EU law from 2008 on the classification, labelling and packaging of hazardous substances.

What are the conditions for pulling the brake?

A notification asking the UK Government to pull the brake must be supported by a minimum of 30 MLAs from at least two parties (excluding the Speaker and Deputy Speakers). It must also be made “in the most exceptional circumstances and as a last resort, having used every other available mechanism”. The MLAs concerned must have sought “prior substantive discussion” with the UK Government and Northern Ireland Executive, consulted businesses and civil society, and engaged (where reasonable to do so) with the EU.

In addition to meeting these procedural conditions, MLAs must also demonstrate that:

  • the updated EU law would make significant changes to the content or scope of the law it is amending, and
  • applying the updated EU law would have “a significant impact specific to everyday life of communities in Northern Ireland in a way that is liable to persist”.

How did the Assembly scrutinise the updated regulation?

The Assembly’s Windsor Framework Democratic Scrutiny Committee (DSC) was established in February 2024 to assist MLAs in carrying out democratic scrutiny of new and updated EU laws which are within the scope of the Windsor Framework.

As part of its inquiry into the 2024 regulation, the DSC considered legal advice on the scope and content of the updated EU law and received evidence from the UK Government, Northern Ireland government departments, and stakeholders representing businesses and civil society. The DSC concluded that the 2024 regulation did make significant changes to the EU law it was updating but “was unable to reach a view” on the impact of the change.

Drawing on this body of evidence, the 35 MLAs considered that the changes made by the 2024 regulation were “important and substantive” and would have “a significant and sustained impact specific to everyday life in Northern Ireland”. They highlighted:

  • the costs associated with new labelling requirements
  • uncertainty whether similar changes would be made to domestic law applicable elsewhere in the UK
  • the possibility that some businesses based in Great Britain might withdraw from the Northern Ireland market
  • the risk of supply chain disruption.

How did the UK Government respond?

Under the Windsor Framework (PDF) itself and in the domestic law on the Assembly’s role, it is the UK Government’s responsibility to determine whether the conditions have been met to use the Stormont Brake, following a notification made by MLAs.

The Secretary of State for Northern Ireland accepted that MLAs had followed the correct procedures in making their notification. However, he considered that “different interpretations” were possible in assessing whether the 2024 regulation made significant changes to the scope or content of the EU law it amended. He also said that, in any case, the updated regulation would not have a significant impact on everyday life of communities in Northern Ireland.

He highlighted existing divergence between Northern Ireland and Great Britain on the labelling of chemicals and the fact that “the overwhelming majority” of businesses that might be affected by applying the 2024 regulation in Northern Ireland also traded with the EU market and would have to comply with the updated EU rules.

In Mr Benn’s view, the substantive conditions for using the Stormont Brake had not therefore been met.

What happens next?

If the UK Government had decided to pull the Stormont Brake, it would have blocked the application of the 2024 regulation in Northern Ireland, but the existing EU law in its unamended form would have continued to apply.

As the UK Government has decided not to pull the brake, the 2024 regulation will apply in Northern Ireland, but Mr Benn has indicated that any negative impact for Northern Ireland could be mitigated by aligning the UK’s domestic rules with the updated EU regime.

To this end, he announced a public consultation to consider “how best to safeguard the UK internal market, including on whether to apply a consistent regime across the UK”.

Further reading

House of Commons Library briefing, Northern Ireland: The Stormont Brake

Northern Ireland Assembly, The Stormont Brake


About the author: Leigh Gibson is a senior EU policy specialist, working for the Parliament, Public Administration and Constitution Hub.

Photo by: Joel Riley. Licensed under CC BY 2.0