UK should not fear EU trade war, says Frost as he backs ripping up protocol

theguardian.com:

The former Brexit minister David Frost has said the UK should not fear a trade war with the EU.

In a provocative newspaper column, he said the UK “cannot be defeated” by Brussels and needed to “make sure it is ready” for the consequences of a unilateral move to scrap parts of the Northern Ireland protocol.

The foreign secretary, Liz Truss, is planning to table legislation next week to disapply some of the protocol in a risky move that could result in sanctions or even the suspension of the trade deal that Lord Frost negotiated in December 2020.

Writing in the Daily Telegraph about the potential move, Frost said: “We may, of course, face EU retaliation, although it would be disproportionate to the trade involved, only arguably legal and entirely self-defeating. I am not convinced every EU member’s heart would be in it either. Logic may yet prevail. But if it does happen, it will complicate things, but we should not fear it.”

Adding to tensions with Europe, Jacob Rees-Mogg claimed on Friday the EU “wants to make the UK feel bad about having left the European Union”. But the Brexit opportunities minister told GB News he doubted the EU would retaliate with something as severe as a trade war if the UK were to remove parts of the protocol, saying it would be a “pretty silly” thing to do.

He questioned whether Brussels would even get the support of all member states. “The European Union would need unanimity and it seems to me that’s a pretty high bar to get,” he told GB News on Friday.

He also argued the EU would be punishing its own voters by introducing a trade war at a time of rising inflation and the cost of living crisis. “Do they really want to make prices even higher for their consumers and their voters? I think that’s an