[ad_1]
Brexit negotiators worked into the wee hours of the morning yesterday to secure a deal that would prevent the UK from new tariffs and border disruptions at the start of the new year.
Your playlist will load after this ad.
The deal is also confusing for many Britons. Source: 1 NEWS
For the British, it means that the impact of the UK’s exit from the European Union’s trade rules in exactly one week has lessened, amid a British economy already struggling in the face of the Covid-19 pandemic.
For Kiwis, their ability to live or work in the UK will not be affected by the deal, but those who trade in the UK or the EU could expect some changes.
Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta said she expected trade details to be addressed promptly and stated that she would negotiate free trade agreements with the UK and New Zealand in the future.
Former trade negotiator Charles Finny told RNZ this morning that the deal was a relief to New Zealand exporters. If there hadn’t been an agreement, Finny said there would have been border chaos and a disruption in exports.
UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson said he was confident the deal, valued at NZ $ 1.3 trillion a year, “would protect jobs across this country.”
“We have regained control of our laws and our destiny,” Johnson said of the agreement.
The exact details of the 2,000-page deal have not been released. But generally it would mean that there would be no taxes on goods traded between the UK and the EU. There are also no limits on the amount of goods that can be traded.
Your playlist will load after this ad.
Boris Johnson eventually sealed an EU exit for Britain, but how did it come about? Source: BBC
But trade still won’t be as smooth as it used to be for the UK.
Companies trading with the EU would now have to submit customs forms and declarations. Different rules will also be introduced for product labeling and health controls for agricultural products.
The additional bureaucracy costs an estimated NZ $ 14 billion a year.
The UK voted to leave its biggest trading partner, the EU, in 2016. The UK continued to follow the EU economic rules as part of a transition period. That transition period ends on December 31.
