AUS
NZ
UK
CA
USA
IND
Summary
- Johnson said that Britain would become EU’s best ally as the transition period ends
British prime minister’s trade deal with the European Union was approved by the UK Parliament last night, making it a law, just a day short of the expiry of the Brexit transition deadline. Both the sides will be looking forward to a new chapter in their trade relations starting tomorrow.
The mutual trade between the UK and the EU is close to nearly $1 trillion every year, hence the importance of the deal. The deal covers a wide spectrum of areas such as goods, services, investment, R&D etc.
Johnson said that he would be working hand in hand with the EU to further boost trade and commerce between the two regions, using UK’s new-found sovereignty to strengthen its economic growth.
(Image source: ©Kalkine Group 2020)
The house of Commons voted 521 to 73 votes in favour of the post-Brexit deal. The legislation was favoured by both Labour and the Conservative parties.
The final approval to the legislation was given by Queen Elizabeth. This enabled the British government to formally implement the deal. The deal was mutually agreed upon nearly a week back on December 24, after months of intense negotiations.
However, the deal has attracted criticism from various quarters. For instance, Labour feels it is too thin and does not take care of trade in services. A former home secretary said that the deal fell short of policy areas like security. The status of Northern Ireland also remains uncertain. Finally, fishermen are not happy with the negotiations and say that the PM sold out their interests.
Nevertheless, Johnson delivered what he had promised – a break with the EU more radical that what few political experts imagined. After the deal, some experts went on to say that Johnson saved the nation’s democracy from years of subjugation to Brussels.
Johnson said that he wanted to become the best ally of the EU as the new relationship unfolded. The new deal preserves UK’s tariff free access to the 27-nation block and its 450 million odd customer base.
Britain officially left the Union on January 31 this year and was given an 11-month transition period to negotiate a favorable free trade agreement.
The new deal will be implemented on a provisional basis in the EU until the end of February, when it gets an approval of the European Parliament.
