Boris Johnson getting Brexit done
Credit: Ben Stansall /AFP
Although Britain technically left the EU on January 31, its relationship with the EU remains the same in practice until the end of the transition period, December 31, 2020. This could have been delayed, but the Government did not ask for an extension.
Brexit trade talks reached a stalemate on December 4 after the EU was accused of making a "ridiculous" demand for 10 years of unfettered access to Britain’s fishing waters as the price of a deal.
The prospect of reaching a deal is still very much hanging in the balance but even if both sides are able to agree, it would still need to be ratified by member states, with France threatening to veto a "bad deal" over access to fish in British waters.
French European Affairs Minister Clement Beaune told Europe radio 1 on Friday: "If a good agreement cannot be reached, we will oppose it. Each country has a veto right."
"I want to tell our fishermen, our producers, the citizens who are listening that we will not accept a deal with bad terms," he added.
Emmanuel Macron has vowed to protect French fishermen, who are heavily dependent on access to UK waters but are expected to lose a significant part of their quota from January 1 if the EU-UK deal is done.
European Council President Charles Michel also stated that the Level Playing Field (LPF) for trade policy is a "key issue" for the EU.
Will the UK leave the EU with a deal?
A no-deal Brexit is the default legal position if the EU and UK cannot come to agree their future relationship, which is considered increasingly likely by several EU nations, who called for no-deal plans to be published by the EU Commission.
On November 19, UK-EU trade talks were temporarily suspended after a negotiator from Michel Barnier’s team tested positive for Covid-19. These talks recommenced nine days later on November 28.
On November 15, the UK’s chief negotiator David Frost stoked fears that a no-deal Brexit could be on the cards when he arrived in Brussels for renewed talks, warning “we may not succeed” in securing a Brexit trade deal.
He said some progress had been made but there remained “significant” differences between the UK and EU’s stances on fishing rights and the level playing field.
The EU wants 50 per cent of the catch in British waters and the UK sticking at 20 per cent.
Simon Coveney, the Irish Foreign Minister, repeated the EU’s warning that it would not ratify any deal unless clauses in the Internal Market Bill overriding the Brexit divorce terms were dropped, although he also suggested that issue will “disappear” if there is a wider trade deal.
A deal must be struck well before the new year if it is to be be ratified in time.
How likely is a no deal Brexit?
What will happen on Brexit Day if there is no deal?
The leak of Yellowhammer – Whitehall code for preparations for no deal – laid bare civil servants’ concerns about the impact of a no-deal without adequate planning. This plan was for a full no-deal, which was averted by the signing of the Withdrawal Agreement earlier this year.
Yellowhammer disclosed that the UK would be hit by a three-month "meltdown" at its ports, a hard Irish border and shortages of fresh food and medicine after it leaves the bloc.
While some aspects of the report will no longer be relevant, a failure to secure a trade deal could still lead to chaos at Britain’s borders. A lack of a deal would mean Britain being treated as any other "third country" by the EU, which would mean tariffs and quotas on UK exports to the EU. This would hit agricultural and car exports especially hard.
Michael Gove, the man charged with no-deal preparations, has instigated a plan for lorries to require permits to enter Kent to prevent them queueing at the border. He has warned of thousands of haulage vehicles without proper export documents getting stuck in the county.
The House of Lords’ overwhelming vote against the controversial Internal Market Bill on November 9 is yet another problem in the road up to Brexit, as Boris Johnson was voted against by 433 to 165. The bill, which would allow the UK to renege on its obligations in the Withdrawal Agreement, unanimously voted against by the Lords, who labelled the legislation as "Trump-like".
However, despite this opposition, the government has said it would reinstate the changes to the bill when it returned to the House of Commons.
At a glance | Operation Yellowhammer
What would happen after the UK leaves the EU with no deal?
- How small businesses can prepare for no-deal
- What no-deal would mean for your personal finances
- What will happen to house prices?
- How no-deal Brexit will affect travel bookings, currency exchange and duty free
- How travel to Europe will change after Brexit
- How driving in Europe might be affected
Could there be another delay to Brexit?
Legally speaking another extension could happen if all EU countries, including the UK, agree to it. However, the deadline for an extension has passed and the UK Government is determined not to have one.
Now, with less than one month until the UK leaves the EU for good, it is highly unlikely that we will see a delay, as doing so late in the day would be legally, technically and politically very difficult.
Свежие комментарии