Henry Hill: Trimble warns that Irish Brexit stance risks antagonising loyalist paramilitaries

Also: Wallace attacks Scottish Government for objection to ‘British values’; Geldof says Easter Rising was a ‘mistake’; SNP woes deepen over indy divisions; and more.

Twenty years on, the Belfast Agreement’s devolution model isn’t working

Evidence is mounting that the Assembly simply doesn’t – and perhaps can’t – deliver good government consistently. But the deal which founded it is treated as holy writ.

Henry Hill: Holyrood and Westminster face off as MSPs pass Brexit bill

Also: Commons gives Bradley the power to cut MLA’s pay – but the Government insists that it isn’t introducing direct rule.

Ray Bassett: It is time for political game-playing over the Irish border to be stopped

Dublin threatens to cut off its nose to spite its face, apparently in a misjudged attempt to pressure the UK into abandoning Brexit. This is a serious error.

Henry Hill: May vows not to imperil the Union with post-Brexit devolution

Also: Bradley talks up pay cut for MLAs; Williamson to protect troops from SNP tax hike; Foster attacks Varadkar for overstepping in talks; and more.

“I want to be straight with people – because the reality is that we all need to face up to some hard facts.” May’s Brexit speech – full text

“We need to resolve the tensions between some of our key objectives…but there are some tensions in the EU’s position too – and some hard facts for them to face as well.”

Alex Redpath: An Irish Sea border would be a disaster for Northern Ireland and the Union

The Belfast Agreement does not mandate the British Government to prioritise a ‘soft’ border over Ulster’s ties to the United Kingdom.

Andrew Lilico: Brussels has reneged on the Phase One deal – it’s time to walk away from the Brexit talks

The Government was very clear about what it agreed to on Northern Ireland last year, and the EU’s proposals are not compatible with it.

Garvan Walshe: To get real Brexit for Great Britain, the DUP should consent to Ulster staying in the Single Market and Customs Union

If there’s to be no border in Ireland, and Britain is to leave the Customs Union and Single Market, it follows that there must be a customs border on the Irish Sea.

Why Northern Ireland’s talks collapsed. Sinn Fein’s red line was too green for the DUP.

Even if the DUP and Sinn Fein could persuade their communities to back the compromises necessary, they have not done so.

Henry Hill: Stormont talks collapse as Foster joins calls for direct rule

Also: SNP’s deputy leadership contest reveals splits over Europe and ‘Indyref2’; and Jones demands ‘soft border’ between Irish and Welsh ports post-Brexit.

The Belfast Agreement should not be hijacked to sacralise all of Dublin’s demands

It does not stipulate that an invisible border with the Republic trumps the integrity of the United Kingdom.

Daniel Hannan: Post-Brexit, we could aim for EFTA. Or model ourselves on Singapore. But either way, we must decide.

It is hard to avoid the impression that leaving is being undertaken in a spirit of damage limitation rather than a spirit of opportunity.

WATCH: Foster – “Northern Ireland must leave the EU on the same terms as the rest of the United Kingdom”

The DUP leader rejects “any form of regulatory divergence which separates Northern Ireland economically or politically from the rest of the UK”.

Owen Polley: The Government’s plan does not consign Northern Ireland to the Customs Union

Of course Ulster’s trade with the mainland must be protected as top priority, but a degree of flexibility on regulations in a small number of sectors is sensible.