Sir, – Further to "Bombardier row is a cautionary lesson in the folly of Brexit" (Opinion & Analysis, October 2nd), Ed O'Loughlin's central claim is that Brexit means that Belfast workers at Bombardier are unable to secure EU collective protection from the "America First" measures being adopted by President Trump's administration, and that Unite is unable to seek EU protections given our union's support for the "Eurosceptic" Jeremy Corbyn. The decision was not made by Mr Trump's administration but on foot of Boeing's case submitted to the long-standing US International Trade Commission. Northern Ireland remains part of the EU at present and there's no reason for us not to benefit from any collective protection afforded by the EU. While he is right that the UK government has not yet sought to escalate this to the EU, this is not Brexit related – the UK government has not, in fact, sought to escalate through the WTO either.
As the leading advocate for the workers, and despite our profound disagreements with the Tories on many things, Unite agrees that seeking resolution through trade-dispute resolution mechanisms would provide very little immediate relief given that a WTO hearing would likely last years. Given the scale and nature of the situation, this is a threat that must be dealt with in the short term. For that reason we have met with representatives at both Stormont and Westminster to impress upon them the urgent need to put pressure on Boeing to back off their corporate bullying. The US administration must understand the full impact of job losses on this scale for Northern Ireland – and that means pressuring Boeing to drop this case. We have also demanded the UK government –Boeing’s second-biggest client globally – follow that of Canada and fully use its leverage to bring Boeing to the table for a negotiated settlement that will guarantee jobs in Belfast.
Mr O’Loughlin claims that Unite’s position is Eurosceptic. Our union certainly does not believe that the EU is perfect. We believe that the EU needs urgent reform to address the concerns that alienate working-class voters across the Continent, who increasingly view it as undemocratic and representing the interests of a neoliberal elite. However, we recognised that leaving the EU could open the door for the Tories to undermine labour protections, encourage the rise of reaction and damage the economy of these islands. Unite actively campaigned for a Remain vote in the referendum last year. Indeed, our union ran the biggest and best-resourced Remain campaign in Northern Ireland, a region which voted against Brexit. Both Unite and Labour under Jeremy Corbyn led a Remain campaign that sought to bring the Remain message into every working-class community. – Yours, etc,
JIMMY KELLY,
Ireland Secretary,
Unite, Belfast.