The UK’s Brexit deal with the EU has cleared its last main political hurdle after the European Parliament ratified it with an overwhelming majority on Wednesday.
The vote in Brussels paves the way for Britain to leave on Friday at midnight Brussels time with few immediate consequences for citizens and businesses on either side. Britain will enter an 11-month transition period, buying time for what are expected to be extremely difficult negotiations on the two sides’ future relationship.
Speaking in the parliament debate, European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen said that “no new partnership will bring back the benefits of being part of the same union” but that both sides had a “duty” to seek the best possible outcome.
She reiterated previous EU warnings that the “precondition” for the tariff-free, quota-free trade deal that Boris Johnson is seeking will be a “level playing field” of common rules.
“We will certainly not expose our companies to unfair competition,” she said, noting that Britain’s car and aerospace sectors were lobbying the UK government to stay in line with EU standards.
MEPs voted to ratify the agreement with 621 in favour, 49 against and 13 abstentions. EU governments will approve it on Thursday, completing their ratification of the deal.
The Brexit treaty enshrines the outcome of two years of tortuous negotiations between Brussels and successive British prime ministers. The agreement compels Britain to pay a £39bn divorce bill, some of which has already been paid, protects the rights of citizens abroad and sets out arrangements for preventing a hard Irish border.
Guy Verhofstadt, the EU parliament’s Brexit coordinator, said the vote was not “in favour or against Brexit”. “It’s a vote for an orderly Brexit . . . against a hard, Brexit,” he said.
One of the immediate consequences of Brexit day will be the departure of the UK’s 73 MEPs, which will lead to a shake up the relative size of the EU parliament’s different political forces. “It’s sad to see a country leaving that twice liberated us, that twice gave its blood to liberate Europe,” said Mr Verhofstadt.
Brussels expects tensions with Britain over how to implement the treaty’s terms, notably when it comes to the Irish border. Mr Johnson pledged during the UK general election campaign that “there will be no checks on goods from GB to Northern Ireland or Northern Ireland to GB”, a claim that runs totally counter to the customs and regulatory system set out in his withdrawal deal.
Ms von der Leyen pledged to be “vigilant” in monitoring that part of the agreement.
With Britain’s departure now imminent, the EU is pressing ahead with preparations for the mammoth negotiations to come with Mr Johnson on future relations, notably on trade and security. The European Commission may publish its draft negotiating mandate as soon as Monday.
Jean-Yves Le Drian, France’s foreign minister, warned on Wednesday that “the hardest part is still to come” in negotiations with the UK.
Source: Economy - ft.com
