BEYOND BREXIT, A NEW ERA OF (FRAGILE) EU-UK RELATIONSHIP

EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement, reconciliation — of sorts — after a puzzling divorce

A GUIDEPOST Report

INTRODUCTION, Trade and Cooperation Agreement
La Moncloa Gobierno de España

Following months of arduous negotiations, on 24 December 2020, the European Union (EU) and the United Kingdom (UK) reached a Trade and Cooperation Agreement to govern relations between the two parties as of 1 January 2021.

The Trade and Cooperation Agreement is a lengthy and complex text with that can be divided into four main sections:

Free trade is a major component of the Trade and Cooperation Agreement. (Photo: UK Customs House on the bank of the Thames, the City of London)

The first is on free trade, which eliminates the quotas and customs duties between the UK and the EU and which establishes a text on conditions for fair competition, one of the greatest demands of the EU during the negotiations.

The second section establishes a framework for economic, social, environmental and fishing cooperation, which aimed at ensuring energy connectivity and transport, together with coordination in areas related to social security.

The third section regulates an association on internal security based on such existing mechanisms as Europol and Eurojust and including provisions on the handover of detainees, the fight against money laundering and the financing of terrorism.

A fourth section establishes a framework for common governance based on an institutional “Association Council” co-chaired by a member of the European Commission and by a representative of the British Government at a ministerial level. The Council will supervise the application of the Agreement and will be assisted by Specialised Committees and Working Groups.

The negotiation for the Trade and Cooperation Agreement was mindful that the  European Union and the United Kingdom constitute two separate markets and two different regulatory and legal spaces which create obstacles in both directions to the trade of goods and services, as well as to mobility and cross-border exchanges.

THE EU-UK TRADE AND COOPERATION AGREEMENT
Sourced from the European Parliament  ©European Parliament

The European Parliament has consented to an agreement setting the rules of the future EU-UK relationship.

The voting which took place on 24 December 2020 was adopted by 660 votes in favor, 5 against, and 32 abstentions, while the accompanying resolution, setting out Parliament’s evaluation of and expectations from the deal, passed by 578 votes, with 51 against and 68 abstentions.

Six hundred-sixty MEPs voted in favor of the Trade and Cooperation Agreement, 5 voted against, and 32 abstained. (Photo: European Parliament, Strasbourg)

The Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) establishes the terms for future EU-UK cooperation and therefore governs the EU-UK relationship. It has been provisionally applied since 1 January 2021 and came into force on a permanent basis on 1 May 2021 but is subject to joint review after five years.

Via the resolution prepared by the UK Coordination Group and the Conference of Presidents which is the European Parliament’s governing body, the Parliament has made it known that it strongly welcomes the conclusion of the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement that limits the negative consequences of the UK’s withdrawal from the EU, which it considers a “historic mistake” since no third country, in this case, the UK, can enjoy the benefits that an EU member can.

The TAC’s zero quotas and zero tariffs between the EU and the UK are viewed positively by the Members of Parliament (MEPs). Moreover, the MEPs reckon that the TAC’s guarantees of fair competition could serve as a model for future EU-UK trade agreements.

The TAC includes provisions for fisheries, consumers, air traffic and energy among others. However, the MEPs regret that the UK did not want the agreement to extend to foreign, security and development policies. Nor did it want to participate in the Erasmus+ student exchange program.

Peace on the island of Ireland

UK PM Boris Johnson signing the Brexit Withdrawal Agreement in January 2020

Considering that preserving peace on the island of Ireland is one of Parliament’s main goals in agreeing to the TAC, MEPs condemn the UK’s recent unilateral actions that breached the Withdrawal Agreement. They call on the UK government “to act in good faith and fully implement the terms of the agreements which it has signed”, including the Protocol on Ireland and Northern Ireland, and apply them in accordance with the timetable jointly set up with the European Commission.

Parliament must be fully involved in monitoring

MEPs have underscored the fact that the Parliament must play a full role in monitoring how TAC is implemented, which involves involvement in unilateral EU actions under the agreement and having its views taken into account.

Quotes

Ursula von der Leyen

President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen (Group of the European People’s Party): “It was worth fighting for this deal because we now have a fair and balanced agreement with the UK, which will protect our European interests, ensure fair competition, and provide much-needed predictability for our fishing communities. Finally, we can leave Brexit behind us and look to the future. Europe is now moving on.” ©European Commission

Andreas Scheider

Andreas Shieder (Group of the Progressive Alliance of Socialists and Democrats Socialists & Democrats), rapporteur for the Committee on Foreign Affairs: “The EU and the UK have created the basis for a relationship among equals. Most importantly, today is a beginning, not the end. We agreed in many important areas, such as securing mutual market access and building a good relationship on trade. Much work remains on foreign policy and educational exchange programmes. For citizens’ interests to be represented, Parliament must be closely involved. Only a partnership in which both sides stick to their commitments has a future.” ©European Parliament

Christophe Hansen

Christophe Hansen (Group of the European People’s Party), rapporteur for the Committee on International Trade: “Ratification of the agreement is not a vote of blind confidence in the UK Government’s intention to implement our agreements in good faith. Rather, it is an EU insurance policy against further unilateral deviations from what was jointly agreed. Parliament will remain vigilant. Let’s now convene the Parliamentary Partnership Assembly to continue building bridges across the Channel.” ©European Parliament

–
Images
Featured image/bluebudgie, Pixabay. Framed. Altered.
UK Customs House/Harshil Shah, CC BY-ND2.0, Flickr
European Parliament/Robert Cutts, CC BY-SA2.0, Flickr
Boris Johnson signing Withdrawal Agreement/Prime Minister, Open Government Licence
Von der Leyen ©European Commission
Andreas Schieder/SPO Presse Kommunikation, CC BY-SA2.0 via Wikimedia Commons. Cropped.
Christophe Hansen/User Tammy Schmit (own work). Cropped by User Zinneke. CC BY-SA4.0, Wikimedia Commons