Simon Coveney (Cork South Central, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

We needed democratic legitimacy for it. One of the asks of the British side was that the protocol should and could never be imposed on Northern Ireland against the will of the majority there. That is something I absolutely agree with. As much as I think the protocol can work, if the majority of people in Northern Ireland do not want it, we have to accept that. The are extraordinary consequences if we do away with the protocol. It raises all sorts of questions around the all-Ireland economy and a whole range of other things. However, there needs to be a democratic endorsement of what is effectively an international agreement.