[ad_1]
– We have finally reached an agreement, said the leader of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, at a press conference in Brussels at 4:00 pm on Christmas Eve.
– It is fair, it is a balanced agreement and it is the right and responsible thing for both parties, continued von der Leyen.
The British government says in a statement that it is “the first free trade agreement based on zero tariffs and quotas ever agreed with the EU.”
– We will continue to work with the UK in all areas where we share interests. For example in climate change, energy and transport. Together we still achieve more than we do for ourselves, said Ursula von der Leyen.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson wrote on Twitter that “the deal has been made,” illustrated with an image of joy.
Fishing agreement for five and a half years
1645 days have passed since the British voted to leave the EU on June 23, 2016.
In recent days, the negotiations have mainly revolved around fishing rights and competition rules.
Ursula von der Leyden says that the agreement on fishing rights lasts for five and a half years.
– We have ensured five and a half years with total predictability for our fishing communities and solid tools to encourage it to continue being so. All that debate, of course, has centered on sovereignty. But we should ask ourselves what sovereignty means in this century, said von der Leyden.
As for competition rules, he says the agreement contains “effective tools.”
– Competition in our common market will be fair and will remain fair. EU rules and standards will be respected. We have effective tools to react if fair competition distorts or affects our trade, he says.
See Ursula von der Leyen’s farewell to Britain.
Traded all night
The parties had been negotiating through the night after Johnson held a conference call with several ministers on Christmas Eve.
The draft agreement on the table will have about 2,000 pages and both parties have until December 31 for it to be approved in parliaments.
According to Sky News, the British Parliament will be called on December 30 to approve the deal.
Consider it a victory
After years of unrest and Brexit postponements, Prime Minister Boris Johnson may cash in on what is seen as a major political victory in London.
Johnson is the non-European general who has worked for this since 2016 when the majority of Brits responded in a referendum that they want to leave the EU after more than 40 years as a member.
There have been great fears that there is still no trade deal after the transition period expires on New Year’s Eve. The chaos in Dover has been a warning of the chaos that can come after the New Year.
Economic downturn
In the long term, Brexit will cause the economy to drop 6%. Unemployment will rise and so will unemployment and store food prices.
But if there hadn’t been a deal now, the economy would have fallen another 2 percent, according to professional economists at OBR. This adds to an economy that due to the coronavirus is in its worst wave valley in 300 years.
The challenge for Johnson now is getting the deal approved by House of Commons politicians who have already traveled over the Christmas break.
The agreement is over 2,000 pages long and not exactly easy to read at Christmas. Keir Starmer of the Labor Party has already said they will vote for the deal, but the question in London will be whether hard-line Brexit fighters in Boris Johansson’s own party will accept the deal or whether they think the government has been too much. ” soft “with the EU to do so. brought down an agreement.
Fisk
Furthermore, it will be exciting to see if the British fishermen are happy or if they feel as if they have been misled.
Fishermen are among those who have had the highest expectations of Brexit and the slogan “regain control of their own borders.”
The EU has wanted to allow its Danish, Belgian, Dutch and French fishermen to continue fishing in British waters and has threatened punitive tariffs on UK fish imports to do so.
Politicians must ratify the agreement
In the EU, the remaining 27 member states must also accept the deal.
The main contentious topics in the final sprint have been fish, subsidies, and who will decide future contentious topics between the parties.
Stock markets surged after Brexit rumors
European stock markets and the value of the pound rose earlier on Christmas Eve after reports that a Brexit deal between the EU and the UK was imminent.
The pound was up 0.5 percent against the dollar and the euro in morning trading.
At the same time, London’s FTSE 100 index rose 0.2% in early trading on Christmas Eve.
In Paris, the CAC 40 index was also up 0.2 percent in the morning, while operations in Frankfurt are closed for Christmas.
Ian Cheshire, chairman of the British central bank Barclays, told the BBC that a deal would allow companies to plan ahead.
– I’m very happy that it looks like we can continue our most important business relationship, he says.
