Recommendation 1

We welcome the fact that the UK and EU have agreed a new security partnership as part of the agreement of the Trade and Co-operation Agreement. At the time of the inquiry hearings, Brexit had had no discernible operational impact on cross-border policing and the ability to co-operate with partners in the EU has been maintained. Before the announcement of the agreement, we had heard concerns that a failure to secure a deal on security could have led to a reliance on cumbersome extradition and intelligence sharing processes. The agreement mitigates these concerns and, importantly, provides a foundation for the continuation of UK and Irish law enforcement agencies’ well developed means of co-operating to maintain the security of the Common Travel Area.