evidence: Brexit has made frictionless trade between the EU and the UK impossible, but the Protocol is a complex system that allows Northern Ireland to remain in the UK customs territory and, at the same time, benefit from access to the Single Market for the movement of goods. [...] The European Commission has launched four new infringement procedures against the United Kingdom for not complying with significant parts of the Protocol on Ireland / Northern Ireland. [...] In a statement following the UK government's announcement regarding the Protocol on Northern Ireland, Vice-President Maroš Šefčovič said the EU was ready to continue to seek creative solutions, within the framework of the Protocol, in the interest of all communities in Northern Ireland.