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Both the UK and the European Union released the text of their Brexit trade deal on Saturday morning. The agreement is about 1,250 pages long, plus agreements on nuclear energy, civil nuclear energy, confidential information and a series of joint statements. The transition phase of Brexit will end in five days and Britain will definitively abandon the EU structures.
In fact, Britain left the EU at the end of January and is only a member of the EU internal market and the customs union during a transition period until December 31. At Christmas, after months of negotiations, an agreement was finally reached on a commercial pact that will regulate relations between the two parties from January 2021 onwards.
Trade without tariffs or quotas
The agreement provides for trade without tariffs or quotas. The treaty explicitly recognizes that trade and investment require a level playing field. With regard to financial services, both parties simply agree to “create a favorable climate for the development of trade and investment.” The text also contains many detailed appendices, including on the topics of fish, wine trade, medicines, chemicals and cooperation on safety data.
Possible “special relationship” between Britain and the EU
According to British Minister of State Michael Gove, the Brexit trade pact negotiated at the last minute allows Britain to have a “special relationship” with the EU. This is how the country traditionally describes its close relationship with the US The trade deal now allows the difficult and “sometimes ugly” Brexit process to be left behind and embark on a new, more hopeful era, Gove wrote in a guest post on the “Times” (Saturday).
However, starting in January, several things would change and companies would have to adapt. On Christmas Eve, London and Brussels announced a breakthrough in talks on a joint trade pact for the period after the transitional phase of Brexit. At the end of the year, the UK finally leaves the structures of the European Union after almost 40 years of membership. This avoids the worst consequences of divorce. The 1,256-page agreement is now available online. It will initially enter into force on a provisional basis, as the time for ratification by the European side is too short. Britain’s Parliament is due to vote on the deal on December 30.
How to proceed at the negotiation level
After ten months, the EU and the UK made a breakthrough on Thursday in difficult negotiations on a post-Brexit trade deal. However, the deal is not yet dry. In Britain, parliament has to give its approval, which will be revoked from the winter break on December 30. On the EU side, at least the governments of the 27 member states must approve the outcome of the negotiations:
Examination in Member States
The Christmas holidays are canceled for many legal and business experts in the capitals of the EU member states. Now you have to check the contract text, which is over a thousand pages long, in no time. Then each government must decide whether it agrees with the outcome of the negotiations. In many cases, a cabinet decision is sufficient. In some cases, however, at least parliamentary information may also be required. In countries with a minority government, talks with the opposition are likely to take place.
Meeting of EU ambassadors
According to preliminary planning, a meeting of the EU ambassadors in Brussels is scheduled for Monday. It could then initiate a written procedure whereby the EU countries jointly formally declare their consent to the trade agreement. The result should be available on Tuesday morning according to an internal EU calendar.
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The agreement will then be signed by the EU on December 30 and published the following day in the Official Journal of the EU.
Provisional application
Member states have already declared their intention to apply the agreement on a provisional basis as of January 1 after the Brexit transition phase. Because there is no longer enough time until the end of the year for regular ratification by the European Parliament. It should take place retrospectively in early 2021. Only Member States would have to accept provisional application, not Parliament.
(what / reuters / dpa)
