LONDON (Reuters) - Britain set out the type of deal it wants with the European Union on Monday, defining post-Brexit relations between the world’s fifth largest economy and its biggest trading partner.
The main points were set out in a written statement to parliament by Prime Minister Boris Johnson:
(here)
- Johnson said there was “complete certainty” that a deal will be finished by the end of 2020. Britain is currently operating under EU rules during a time-limited transition period.
- He said there were two types of deal available:
1. A deeper trading relationship on the lines of the free trade agreement the EU has with Canada.
2. A relationship based simply on the Brexit Withdrawal Agreement deal agreed in Oct. 2019.
- Any deal cannot include “any regulatory alignment, any jurisdiction for the CJEU (Court of Justice of the European Union) over the UK’s laws, or any supranational control in any area, including the UK’s borders and immigration policy”.
- Johnson said he wants a “suite of agreements” covering:
1. A comprehensive free trade agreement covering substantially all trade.
2. An agreement on fisheries.
3. An agreement to cooperate in the area of internal security.
4. A number of more technical agreements covering areas such as aviation or civil nuclear cooperation.
- All these should have “governance and dispute settlement arrangements appropriate to a relationship of sovereign equals”.
THE FREE TRADE DEAL
Johnson set out 12 areas he believed the deal should cover:
1. National Treatment and Market Access for Goods
“There should be no tariffs, fees, charges or quantitative restrictions between the UK and the EU. There should be a protocol setting out appropriate and modern rules of
