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After months of unrest, the British government on Friday agreed a new plan for future relations with the EU after Brexit. It is now targeting a "free trade area" with the EU. The Cabinet approved this "common position" at a think tank, as announced by Prime Minister Theresa May.
01.19, 07 July 2018
With the meeting at the county seat, the government had wanted to settle his violent internal dispute over the future of commercial relations with Europe. In part, the London government says goodbye to its tough course on Brexit. Nevertheless, the plan should be greeted with skepticism in Brussels.
Great Britain therefore intends to remain closely tied to the European internal market in terms of trade, even after leaving the EU. The aim is to prevent cross-border trade and supply chains between Britain and the mainland from being affected. This must be ensured by a "common regulation" in which London adopts the EU rules and product standards.
However, the other three freedoms – capital, labor and services – should be restricted. The British want to stop the unhindered entry of EU citizens and follow their own path in the important service sector. They accept that banks and insurance companies no longer have unlimited access to the EU single market. The question is whether Brussels is engaging in such a trade. To date, the EU has adopted the position that the four freedoms of the internal market are not individually negotiable.
London intends to continue leaving the European Customs Union to conclude its own trade agreements with third countries such as the United States and China. However, to avoid border controls between Northern Ireland and Ireland, the British want to impose two different tariffs on imports from third countries: one for goods destined for the European market and another for goods sold in the United Kingdom. should be. This could also be welcomed with skepticism in Brussels
. May had badembled ministers to his country, Checkers, to resolve the fierce internal dispute over the future shape of trade relations with Europe. Resistance to the Prime Minister came mainly from the Brexit supporters, who clearly broke with the EU and ignored May's plan to adapt to European trade rules.
May pointed out Friday night that the Cabinet was behind her. "The Council of Ministers is now in agreement on broad discussions on our common position for negotiations with the EU," she said.
The disunity of the British government has increasingly forced negotiations with Brussels. The EU has recently complained that Britain has still not clearly defined its negotiating goal nine months before Brexit.
EU chief negotiator, Michel Barnier, announced that he would consider the proposals, if they are "achievable and realistic" with regard to the European Commission's negotiating guidelines. He looks forward to detailed plans. He said on Twitter this late Friday night.
In Britain itself, pro and anti-EU leaders were unhappy. Let go Leave Chief John Longworth accused May of misleading Brexit defenders: the proposals amounted to a "fake Brexit". On the other hand, pro-European Labor MP Chuka Umunna said the agreement was "a new patchwork behind closed doors that would make us all worse".
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