Rishi Sunak’s new Brexit deal is an end to any dreams of a UK that runs itself. Much of the focus has been on Northern Ireland, with the government hailing the legislation as a means of halting post-Brexit checks on goods moving between Great Britain and Northern Ireland. But there are far bigger – and more troubling – implications for the UK as a whole.

Sunak’s deal makes it clear that our laws are still, in some cases, second to EU laws. So ignore the fanfare that the new deal, agreed with the DUP and called ‘Safeguarding the Union’, is something to celebrate. A large, dramatic, slight of hand is taking place. Let me explain why.

When the government agreed the Windsor Framework – the deal the UK and the EU thrashed out for Northern Ireland in March 2023 – the DUP refused to endorse it. Much of the controversy surrounded the border in the Irish Sea, between the rest of the UK, and Northern Ireland. But now the Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) has come on board to say that it supports Sunak’s agreement. In doing so, it has made a mistake. Why? Because there is still a border between two bits of our country: Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK. The DUP, which, before more than £3 billion was put on the table by the British government, knew this. Now, they seem to have changed their tune.

Back in the summer of 2021, the DUP said that seven, stringent, tests must be fulfilled before they agreed the Windsor Framework:

1. Return the sixth article of the Act of the Union 1800
2. Avoid diversion of trade
3. No border in the Irish Sea
4. Giving NI people a say in their laws
5. No checks on goods between GB/NI
6. No new regulatory barriers between NI and rest of UK, unless agreed in Stormont
7. Preserve the ‘letter and spirit’ of NI’s position set out in the Good Friday Agreement

Are any of these tests met in this latest announcement? Not really. So the DUP’s volte face amounts to a pretty comprehensive surrender. The DUP and the UK government is, it seems, now going to pretend that the Irish Sea border does not exist. As a result, we are in the territory of the Emperor’s New Clothes.

Whether the DUP, or the government pretends otherwise, the Irish Sea Border is still there. How can we tell? Because Sunak’s deal won’t remove EU law or European Court of Justice jurisdiction from Northern Ireland in a way that doesn’t apply to the rest of the UK. What’s more, the EU can still control how goods flow from Northern Ireland to the rest of the UK; and our law remains subject to EU law.

Page 17 of the new plan spells out why this new deal is bad news, for all of us. We promise… ‘A legal requirement that new legislation is assessed as to whether it impacts on trade between Northern Ireland and Great Britain and, if so, for ministers to make a statement considering any impacts on the operation of Northern Ireland’s place in the UK’s internal market.’

This means that the UK government will be assessing our laws, to make sure they don’t expose the Irish Sea Border. As a result, we will align, by choice, with EU laws. We are not a member of the EU; instead, the UK is something of a super-fan. We are going to do as we are told, by choice.