Liz Truss tells EU that Britain has 'no choice' but to rip up Northern Ireland protocol, as Joe Biden calls for 'leadership'

• The UK government has "no choice but to act" in tearing up the Northern Ireland protocol, Liz Truss said.
• She spoke to Brussels chief Maroš Šefčovič days before plans for new legislation are to be unveiled.

A senior UK minister has told the European Union she will have "no choice" but to rip up parts of the Northern Ireland protocol, further ratcheting up tensions between the two sides.

Liz Truss, the foreign secretary and chief Brexit negotiator, told her Brussels counterpart Maroš Šefčovič that the EU was leaving Britain without any alternative but to unilaterally tear up the agreement signed less than three years ago.

In a call on Thursday morning, the European Commission president "confirmed there was no room to expand the EU negotiating mandate, or introduce new proposals to reduce the overall level of trade friction," according to a read-out of the call issued from London.

But Truss said that the situation in Northern Ireland had become a "matter of internal peace and security" and that "with regret" the government had no choice but to "act."

As early as next Monday Boris Johnson is expected to "float" plans for how the UK will override parts of the protocol, Insider reported Wednesday night. Truss will then set out the details of the bill – which carries the working title 'UK Internal Market 2' – to the Commons, before appearing at the 1922 committee of Tory backbenchers.

The plan is designed to end border checks on goods traveling from Britain into Northern Ireland and the jurisdiction of the European Court of Justice on UK territory, which have become major bones of contention for unionists on both sides of the Irish Sea.

Sources told Insider that Suella Braverman, the attorney general, had given the new bill her legal backing, although a sizeable Tory rebellion is expected. Braverman recently told Johnson to suspend "disloyal" MPs.

However, the EU has not backed down from its threats of retaliation.

"Unilateral action, effectively disapplying an international agreement such as the protocol, is simply not acceptable," Šefčovič said in a statement.

"This would undermine trust between the EU and UK as well as compromise our ultimate objective – to protect the Good Friday agreement in all its dimensions, while ensuring legal certainty and predictability for the people and businesses in Northern Ireland."

Despite the UK government sending Conor Burns, a Northern Ireland minister, to Washington to discuss the move, the White House has made clear its displeasure at the plans.

President Biden called on the prime minister to show "leadership" and continue negotiations, with his spokeswoman saying: "We urge the parties to continue engaging in dialogue to resolve differences and bring negotiations to a successful conclusion."