The 11-month transition period during which the UK and the European Union were supposed to negotiate the nature of their post-Brexit economic relationship it will come to an end on December 31st. A few days before the end of this period, the two parties reached a trade and cooperation agreement, which will affect the relationship between the two parties for years to come, after months of negotiations. The new agreement that was unanimously approved by the EU nations will enter into force from January 1.
Still, the deal is not yet law and must be ratified by the UK and EU parliaments, a process that will likely take a few more weeks. Until the agreement is formally approved and signed, it will be provisionally applicable.
So what will change from January 1?
At 23:00 GMT on December 31, the UK will leave the EU Single Market and Customs Union (under the customs union, the UK would not be able to negotiate with other EU member countries separately), all EU policies and international agreements. This means that the free movement of goods, people, services and capital will stop from January 1, as the EU and the United Kingdom will become two separate market spaces, with different regulations.
When the UK was a member of the EU (the UK’s largest trading partner), it was unable to conduct trade negotiations with countries like the US and Australia, but now it will be able to set its own trade policy.
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As part of the agreement, which is a free trade agreement, the UK and the EU have agreed to 100 per cent tariff liberalization, meaning there will be no tariffs or quotas on goods moving between the UK and the EU. No tariffs means that there will be no taxes on goods that move across borders and zero quotas means that there will also be no limit on the quantities of goods that can move across borders. This will be the first time that the EU has agreed zero quotas and zero tariffs with a trading partner. Without a free trade agreement like this, companies would have to pay taxes on goods, which would have increased their costs.
However, despite these benefits, as of January 1 there will continue to be barriers to trade in goods and services, something that did not exist before. For example, companies anticipate increased paperwork once the new trade agreement takes effect.
For people traveling between the UK and the EU, it means that while their entry will remain visa-free, they may be subject to review and will no longer be able to use biometric passports.
Additionally, the UK will have sovereignty over its fishing waters, one of the main sticking points during the negotiations. The UK will abandon the EU Common Fisheries Policy on December 31, but the current rules will largely be in place during the transition period that will last more than five years. This means that European vessels will continue to have more access to UK fishing waters and the two sides will jointly manage fish stocks in EU and UK waters.
There are also other aspects of the trade deal, such as mobile roaming. People traveling to EU countries and vice versa may have to pay roaming charges if their mobile network operators decide to do so. The agreement mentions that operators should charge reasonable roaming fees. Additionally, from 1 January onwards, duty-free airport sales of electronics and apparel will stop, pet passports issued in Great Britain will not be valid in the EU, and travelers from the UK will be subject to travel restrictions imposed on passengers coming from outside the EU. countries, the BBC reported.
Finally, the agreement is based on international law and not on EU law. This means that the Court of Justice of the European Union can no longer play a role and the UK does not have to follow EU law.
When did the Brexit process start and why did it take so long?
The first public vote on Brexit took place on June 23, 2016, when 52 percent of voters decided to leave the EU. David Cameron, who was Prime Minister at the time, had announced that he would hold a referendum on the UK’s membership in the EU if his party won the 2013 general election. After Cameron was elected to a second term, it was passed the European Union Referendum Law of 2015 and the referendum was held in June 2016.
Cameron resigned a day after the referendum as he supported the UK to remain in the EU. He was succeeded by Theresa May.
Brexit was due to occur on March 29, 2019, two years after May activated Article 50, which officially signified the UK’s decision to leave the EU. These two years were given to the May government to reach an agreement to leave the EU. The March 29 deadline was delayed twice after MPs rejected the withdrawal deal negotiated in May with the EU.
After MPs rejected the deal a third time, May resigned and was replaced by Boris Johnson. One of the most crucial sticking points for MPs was the Irish supporters governing the nature of the border between Northern Ireland (which is part of the UK) and the Republic of Ireland (part of the EU). The reservations were the most contentious issues at the time and are a measure of the withdrawal agreement aimed at ensuring that there is no firm border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.
Under Johnson, the caps were removed and instead a border was created in the Irish Sea.
Now, starting on January 1, there will be a new trade border between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK, which means that the former will remain under the EU single market and follow EU customs rules.
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