London Daily

Focus on the big picture.
Sunday, Aug 31, 2025

King Charles Intensifies The UK-EU Impasse On Northern Ireland Tour

King Charles Intensifies The UK-EU Impasse On Northern Ireland Tour

The new British monarch met the leaders at the royal estate of Hillsborough Castle as part of a UK tour following the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II.
King Charles III on Tuesday raised a fraught post-Brexit impasse between the United Kingdom and the European Union during a meeting with Northern Ireland's feuding political leaders.

The new British monarch met the leaders at the royal estate of Hillsborough Castle as part of a UK tour following the death of his mother, Queen Elizabeth II.

In a speech at Hillsborough, Charles pledged to "seek the welfare" of all Northern Ireland's divided communities, stressing the queen had "never ceased to pray for the best of times for this place and its people".

He held a reception with the party leaders after the speech, including the pro-UK Democratic Unionist Party's Jeffrey Donaldson and Michelle O'Neill of Sinn Fein, which wants unification with Ireland.

Charles expressed keen interest in the issue of the Brexit-related Northern Ireland Protocol, engaging in a lengthy conversation with Donaldson over the issue, the domestic PA news agency reported.

Donaldson said he was hopeful that on-off talks with the EU over reform of the protocol would "progress", it reported, without quoting sources.

Sinn Fein emerged on top in Northern Irish elections in May, but the DUP has refused to let the regional assembly reconvene unless London and Brussels abandon the protocol.

The pact entails checks on goods entering Northern Ireland from mainland Britain, prompting the DUP to fret that the territory is being gradually hived off from the UK.

But Donaldson welcomed conciliatory noises from the EU over potential changes to minimise the checks, PA said, as the new UK government presses legislation to overhaul the protocol on its own.

Charles meanwhile thanked O'Neill for Sinn Fein's condolences over his mother's death, PA reported.

After Hillsborough, a religious service was held in Belfast where Charles shook hands with Irish President Michael D. Higgins, in the king's first meeting with another head of state.

The Sinn Fein speaker of Northern Ireland's Stormont assembly, Alex Maskey, gave a reading at the service, before the king met well-wishers outside the cathedral and flew out to London.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
Corporate America Cuts Middle Management as Bosses Take On Triple the Workload
Parents Sue OpenAI After Teen’s Death, Alleging ChatGPT Encouraged Suicide
Amazon Faces Lawsuit Over 'Buy' Label on Digital Streaming Content
Federal Reserve Independence Questioned Amid Trump’s Push to Reshape Central Bank
British Politics Faces Tumultuous Autumn After Summer of Rebellions and Rising Farage Momentum
US Appeals Court Rules Against Most Trump-Era Tariffs
UK Sought Broad Access to Apple Users’ Data, Court Filing Reveals
UK Bank Shares Dive Over Potential Tax on Sector
Germany’s Auto Industry Sheds 51,500 Jobs in First Half of 2025 Amid Deepening Crisis
Bruce Willis Relocated Due to Advanced Dementia
French and Korean Nuclear Majors Clash As EU Launches Foreign Subsidy Probe
EU Stands Firm on Digital Rules as Trump Warns of Retaliation
Getting Ready for the 3rd Time in Its History, Germany Approves Voluntary Military Service for Teenagers
Argentine President Javier Milei Evacuated After Stones Thrown During Campaign Event
Denmark Confronts U.S. Diplomat Over Covert Trump-Linked Influence in Greenland
Starmer Should Back Away from ECHR, Says Jack Straw
Trump Demands RICO Charges Against George Soros and Son for Funding Violent Protests
Taylor Swift Announces Engagement to NFL Star Travis Kelce
France May Need IMF Bailout, Warns Finance Minister
Chinese AI Chipmaker Cambricon Posts Record Profit as Beijing Pushes Pivot from Nvidia
After the Shock of Defeat, Iranians Yearn for Change
Ukraine Finally Allows Young Men Aged Eighteen to Twenty-Two to Leave the Country
The Porn Remains, Privacy Disappears: How Britain Broke the Internet in Ten Days
YouTube Altered Content by Artificial Intelligence – Without Permission
Welcome to The Definition of Insanity: Germany Edition
Just a reminder, this is Michael Jackson's daughter, Paris.
Spotify’s Strange Move: The Feature Nobody Asked For – Returns
Manhunt in Australia: Armed Anti-Government Suspect Kills Police Officers Sent to Arrest Him
China Launches World’s Most Powerful Neutrino Detector
How Beijing-Linked Networks Shape Elections in New York City
Ukrainian Refugee Iryna Zarutska Fled War To US, Stabbed To Death
Elon Musk Sues Apple and OpenAI Over Alleged App Store Monopoly
2 Australian Police Shot Dead In Encounter In Rural Victoria State
Vietnam Evacuates Hundreds of Thousands as Typhoon Kajiki Strikes; China’s Sanya Shuts Down
UK Government Delays Decision on China’s Proposed London Embassy Amid Concerns Over Redacted Plans
A 150-Year Tradition to Be Abolished? Uproar Over the Popular Central Park Attraction
A new faith called Robotheism claims artificial intelligence isn’t just smart but actually God itself
Deputy Prime Minister Angela Rayner Purchases Third Property Amid Housing Tax Reforms Debate
HSBC Switzerland Ends Relationships with Over 1,000 Clients from Saudi Arabia, Lebanon, Qatar, and Egypt
Sharia Law Made Legally Binding in Austria Despite Warnings Over 'Incompatible' Values
Italian Facebook Group Sharing Intimate Images Without Consent Shut Down Amid Police Investigation
Dutch Foreign Minister Resigns Amid Deadlock Over Israel Sanctions
Trump and Allies Send Messages of Support to Ukraine on Independence Day Amid Ongoing Conflict
China Reels as Telegram Chat Group Shares Hidden-Camera Footage of Women and Children
Sam Nicoresti becomes first transgender comedian to win Edinburgh Comedy Award
Builders uncover historic human remains in Lancashire house renovation
Australia Wants to Tax Your Empty Bedrooms
MotoGP Cameraman Narrowly Avoids Pedro Acosta Crash at Hungarian Grand Prix
FBI Investigates John Bolton Over Classified Documents in High-Profile Raids
Report reveals OpenAI pitched national ChatGPT Plus subscription to UK ministers
×