Brexit will destroy Good Friday Agreement - Adams

Mr Adams made his remarks at a conference in Dublin on Saturday where he said Northern Ireland should enjoy special status after Brexit, claiming it would not affect the constitutional settlement which secures its status as part of the UK.

“Taking the North out of the EU will destroy the Good Friday Agreement,” he said.

“The British government’s intention to take the North out of the EU, despite the wish of the people there to remain, is a hostile action.

“Not just because of the implications of a hard border on this island, but also because of its negative impact on the Good Friday Agreement.

“The British prime minister repeated her intention to bring an end to the jurisdiction of the European Court.

“Along with her commitment to remove Britain from the European Convention on Human Rights, this stand threatens to undermine the fundamental human rights elements of the Good Friday Agreement.

“As the dire economic implications of Brexit take shape, there is an opportunity to promote a new agreed Ireland.

“The British position fails to take account of the fact that citizens in the North, under the agreement, have a right to Irish citizenship and therefore EU citizenship.”