Brandon Lewis’ memorable quote was made while he was standing in the House of Commons in 2020.
He spoke to MPs about his government’s plans to violate international law by amending the Brexit agreement with the EU. He said that the plan was to do this in a “very limited and specific way”.
In the same way, his legacy in Northern Ireland might be remembered.
He was only able to work for two-and-a half years and spent most of his time dealing with the pandemic.
There were also standout moments that will be cherished, and some of these will go down in history.
While he repeatedly denied the existence a Irish sea border, he vigorously supported the government’s support of the Northern Ireland protocol.
This protocol is part of the 2019 Brexit agreement and keeps Northern Ireland in EU’s single marketplace for goods. It prevents a hard border between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.
It also means that items entering Northern Ireland from the UK will be subject to inspections. This creates a trade barrier in the Irish Sea.
Brandon Lewis had to speak up the same Irish sea border that he denied existed when the government’s position on the protocol changed.
He was forced to make a painful U-turn, but it wasn’t the first time.
Brandon Lewis arrived in Stormont while the ink was still damp on the New Decade, New Approach agreement. He adopted a non-committal approach to devolution.
He had worked with the Irish government and Julian Smith to get the parties back into government three years ago. There was no obvious place for him in the castle.
However, this was soon to change.
His supporters will be able to point out the interventions he made.
After Sinn Fein had accused the DUP, Mr Lewis introduced legislation for the Ulster Scots and Irish language at Westminster. He was referring to the DUP’s failure to fulfill a promise to pass the laws in Stormont.
In the absence of an agreement from the Northern Ireland Executive, he also directed the Department of Health and Health to order abortion services.
Brandon Lewis was able to unite the victims and political parties in Northern Ireland when it came time to dealing with the past. This is a rare feat by a secretary-of-state.
This was after his controversial legacy legislation which sought to end all Troubles-related criminal prosecutions and shut down investigations, including civil cases.
He did manage to guide Northern Ireland through its centenary with relative ease, but the Northern Ireland Executive fell apart under his watch. All attempts to put it back together failed so far.
Brandon Lewis enjoys cycling, despite his political views.
After resigning as secretary for Northern Ireland, he’ll be able to spend more time on that. It was not an easy job.
