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The European Union and the United Kingdom again disagree with the British government’s bill that would modify parts of the Brexit withdrawal treaty.
The Boris Johnson government has rejected EU demands to scrap the proposed new plan despite admitting it would violate international law and Brussels threatens legal action.
Why has the last row started?
The UK has introduced the Internal Market Act which covers trade within England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. It seeks to change key elements of the withdrawal agreement approved earlier this year by the EU and the UK.
How would this violate the Brexit deal?
The two main areas where the bill would violate the treaty are state aid and export declarations, although there are other conflicting areas.
The withdrawal agreement sets out rules that place Northern Ireland in two economic camps, the EU and the UK, to avoid a rigid border on the island of Ireland. The proposed British law would violate rules that are designed to prevent companies in Northern Ireland from having a competitive advantage with UK government subsidies and would ensure controls over goods entering Northern Ireland.
How exactly does the legislation do that?
It gives the UK government the power to break the parts of the withdrawal agreement and specifically the Northern Ireland Protocol within it.
Section 42 of the bill gives the UK government the authority to “waive” or modify the protocol so that Northern Irish companies do not have to complete export declarations or comply with other exit procedures to avoid export controls. goods crossing the Irish Sea. This was part of the Brexiters’ promise to Northern Ireland that it would have “unrestricted access” to the UK domestic market.
Section 43 of the Internal Market Bill gives the Northern Secretary the right to ‘opt out’ of or amend Article 10 of the protocol which aims to prevent Northern Irish companies from benefiting from Westminster state aid, a key goal of Brexit supporters to protect UK sovereignty.
The bill also protects the UK from legal challenges by saying that EU jurisprudence or legislation will not apply, blocking any cases from the European Union Court of Justice on illegal state aid. The EU has said the bill would violate the good faith obligation of the treaty.
Didn’t the UK government accept, vote, and sign the withdrawal treaty into law?
Yes. Johnson described the deal as “ready for the oven” ahead of Britain’s December elections, and in January the prime minister hailed the signing of the divorce deal as a “fantastic moment” in British history.
So why are we here now?
Talks between the EU and the UK have failed this year, as the two sides seek to reach a trade deal that would come into effect when the Brexit transition period ends in December. The division between the parties remains on state aid and controls of the Irish Sea.
Confidence between the EU and the UK has plummeted to a new low over the British bill. Northern Secretary Brandon Lewis’s admission that the bill would violate the EU withdrawal treaty and international law “in a specific and limited way” makes negotiating a trade deal before the end of the year very difficult.
What would that mean on January 1?
It would mean a hard Brexit and the rules of the World Trade Organization would apply to goods traded between the EU and the UK. This would lead to high tariffs and quotas in both directions, which could cause serious trade disruption and economic damage to companies.
Is there any hope that relationships will improve?
No, if the rhetoric of the last few days is of any use. Johnson wrote in blunt terms in the Daily Telegraph on Saturday that the bill was necessary to prevent the EU from installing a “blockade” on food from Britain to Northern Ireland and that the UK “cannot leave theoretical power. to divide our country – divide that – in the hands of an international organization ”.
Foreign Minister Simon Coveney has said that “no blockade is proposed” and that this “inflammatory language” was “a twist and not the truth.”
Checks would be required to prevent goods from moving from Great Britain to the Republic through the North without tariffs if there was no trade agreement.
What does this mean for Ireland?
Once again, how to keep the border open on the island of Ireland while the UK exits the EU entirely remains the dilemma, as it has been since the UK voted against in 2016.
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