The new leader of the DUP has accused the Irish Government of being a "cheerleader" for the Northern Ireland Protocol and for "one side of the community".
Speaking after his leadership was endorsed by the party's electoral college this morning, Jeffrey Donaldson said he plans to meet the Irish Government "at some stage".
"I want to make it clear to the Irish Government, that their cheerleading for the protocol is simply not acceptable, given the harm that it is doing to Northern Ireland, it is dragging our politics backwards," he said.
Mr Donaldson said that the Irish Government needed to "step away from being a cheerleader for one part of the community".
"If the Irish Government is genuine about protecting the peace process and protecting political stability in Northern Ireland, then they too need to listen to unionist concerns," he said.
Mr Donaldson warned that north-south relationships could suffer.
He said that if the Irish Government is "intent on harming our relationship with Great Britain" then it "cannot expect that it will be business as usual on the north south relationships".
"If the Irish Government continues to support the imposition of a protocol that harms our relationship with Great Britain then by implication it harms the relationship between Dublin and Belfast."
Mr Donaldson said it was not acceptable for them to be on one side of the argument and he accused the Irish Government of just listening to the nationalist side of the argument and not listening to unionists.
"We need the Irish Government to get back to a place where it respects the rights of unionists and the people in Northern Ireland generally to be part of the United Kingdom, and not to have barriers to trade within our own country."
The new DUP leader @J_Donaldson_MP has accused the Irish government of being a "cheerleader" for the NI protocol & for "one side of the community" @rtenews @vincekearney @RTENewsPaulC pic.twitter.com/ZHejZ5rBlP
— Laura Hogan (@LauraHoganTV) June 26, 2021
Mr Donaldson was endorsed by 32 of the 36 members of his party's electoral college today.
He was elected unopposed last Tuesday following the resignation of his predecessor, Edwin Poots, after just 21 days in office.
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He said that as well as working to deliver on healthcare, waiting lists and post-pandemic economic recovery, tackling the Northern Ireland protocol would be his priority.
Mr Donaldson said the protocol undermines Northern Ireland's place within the union and is doing "enormous harm to the economy".
He said his priority was to "right the wrong that has been done by the imposition of the protocol and restore Northern Ireland's place fully within the UK internal market".
On the next steps for his leadership, Mr Donaldson, who is a long-standing MP in Westminster, said he would "look for an opportunity if it presents itself" to return to Stormont as an MLA.
He said that the current First Minister Paul Givan, who was nominated by his predecessor, outgoing party leader Edwin Poots, would remain in the role "for the time being".
Jeffrey Donaldson will meet with his party officers next week after he is formally ratified to discuss his ministerial team.
He said he has not yet made any decisions but they will consider "what is in the best interests of the people of Northern Ireland".
Edwin Poots did not attend today's party meeting.
He stepped down just over a week ago, following an internal row about a commitment the Secretary of State made over the provision of Irish language legislation.
Today, Jeffrey Donaldson said that it was "not a sustainable position" for the British government to "concede to Sinn Féin's demands" and "go over the heads of the Assembly" while at the same time not addressing concerns over the protocol.
Meanwhile, speaking on RTÉ Raidió na Gaeltachta Taoiseach Micheál Martin said he knew Mr Donaldson well, and that the parties in Northern Ireland needed to work together to overcome the current difficulties.
He told An tSeachtain le Máirín Ní Ghadhra: "I know Jeffrey Donaldson of old, I worked with him before. I hope that I can build a good relationship with him and with the other parties too.
"The most important thing is that the institutions created under the Good Friday Agreement are protected, especially the Assembly and the Executive. Every party needs to work towards keeping them safe.
"There are difficulties at the moment, but we must all work together, to deal with Brussels and the Commission on the one hand, and the British government on the other. It’s vital that the British government and the Commission work together to resolve the issues with the Protocol."
Northern Ireland Protocol 'is here to stay'
Fine Gael's spokesperson for European Affairs said that the protocol "isn't going anywhere" and is the product of the "absolute disaster" of Brexit.
Responding to Jeffrey Donaldson's comments, Neale Richmond said North-South relations are really important and there is a lot to discuss.
But ultimately, he said, the Northern Ireland protocol is here to stay.
"The protocol isn't going anywhere. It's a legal agreement signed by both the British government and the European Union. It was passed by the Irish parliament, both houses, unanimously, and it's something that we are supportive of, because it provides certainty on this island after the absolute disaster that is Brexit."
Mr Richmond said that the Irish Government will always work with unionist partners in Northern Ireland, but that its also about working with everyone.
He said the vast majority people in Northern Ireland "didn't even want Brexit".
He said that Europe's chief negotiator Maros Sefcovic would address the Northern Ireland Assembly next week.
"We can look at flexibilities, we can look at the working practices, but ultimately the protocol is the solution, it's not the problem."
Mr Richmond said that the "most obvious and glaring changes" that could be made to the protocol is a veterinary agreement which would see "85% of the checks" currently required on goods going into Great Britain from Northern Ireland "removed overnight".
