Great Brexit brawl: EU offers to improve N Ireland deal

By RAF CASERT
Associated Press

BRUSSELS (AP) — The great Brexit brawl is heading into its next standoff as European Union concessions to improve trade in Northern Ireland are likely to be deemed insufficient by the United Kingdom. The EU’s top Brexit official has proposed major changes in the customs system for Northern Ireland. It is U.K. territory but remained part of the EU’s borderless trading market when the U.K. left the bloc last year. Goods must be checked between Britain and Northern Ireland. EU official Maros Sefcovic said Wednesday that checks on food, plants and animals could be cut by 80% under his proposal. However, the U.K is insisting the EU to cede final legal oversight of any trade disputes.