Brexit  Finance department

To understand Brexit we have to understand  Can enter into agreement, treaties on

EU first. behalf of EU countries
European Union  Euro-pol
 EU court of justice
28 countries-1
Integration based on
3. Social Integration
 Economic Issues
 Common migration policies
 Political Issues
 Regional immigrants
 Social Issues
 Common refugee policy
Syrian refugee issue: Greece accommodated
1. Economic Integration
more than other countries. EU were to sort
Includes
out equal distribution
a) Common job markets
 Schengen Visa
Quota for other Europeans countries in job
Citizen of particular EU country is the
market- UK has accommodated 3.7M.
citizen of EU
France has 4M Europeans job holders.
Borderless Europe
UK contributed 14B Euros in 2107
 Euro-train
France contributed 17B.
Euro-star
b) Free trade
Free trade zones
 Euro zone — Tax tariffs 0-12% Brexit Referendum
 Non Euro Zone — Tax tariffs 4-18% 1. Historical Background
Note: WTO — Tax can be as low 12% to as Opposition to European Economic
max as 38% community because
 Wanted agreement with EEC as
c) Common trade policies well common wealth
Collectively go into agreement. No country  Against sovereignty
can enter into on their own. UK played Lisbon agreement: Any country wants to
pivotal role — Pakistan gsp+1 status pull out can only pull out through
ECB got enormous powers of printing referendum
2016- Brexit referendum by marginal 51.9%
d) Common bailout packages England and Wales voted in favour of
ECB to provide common bailout facilities o referendum by voting 53% and 522.5% in
EU countries favour
 Greece — 2001 Scotland and Ireland voted 56% and 62%
 PIIGS nations against the Brexit
2. Reasons of with-drawl
e) Concept of common currency  Social
Euro was introduced in 1999  Political
Those who adopted were included in the  Economic
Euro-zone. More beneficial.
European central bank was given massive 1. Social Reasons
powers monetary powers  Unemployment had skyrocketed
 Old age conservative played a
pivotal role
2. Political Integration
67% votes were submitted by voters of 60+
Massive legislative powers
UK was not ready to accommodate Syrian
75% of its members come through Suffrage
refugees
Represents the will of the EU countries
2. Political Reasons
 Common trade policies
 UK wanted sovereign powers
 Policies of EU budget
 UK wanted preferential trade
 Common job market
agreements rather the integrating
 Common foreign policy
policies for trade
 Legislative assembly
 Populism: Driven by conservatives
 Did not want to be undermined by
German and French Hegemony.
3. Economic Reasons
 UK wanted to come out of common job
market
 UK wanted to have their own trade
policies
 NHS was crisis while they contributed
14B Euros to EU
Brexit deal
Teresa May had two options
 Hard Exit
 Soft Exit
A. Soft Exit
1. Status quo prevails
If UK pull out of 3.7M job for EU countries.
It will 4M of its own unemployed in Europe
EU also wanted UK not to leave like that as
UK jobs were high paid in comparison to
other EU countries
2. Common trade laws with EU and EU
would not intervene in new agreements of
UK with the rest of the world.
3. UK will be part of single market.
4. Status quo on the future of Ireland
Good Friday agreement to be held. Free
borders between Northern and Republic of
Ireland to be followed.
N. Ireland demanded soft border
Response of the British Parliament
Soft deal was rejected. Three factions were
formed in the British parliament.
a. Hard Brexitiers: Small in numbers.
Majority conservative
b. Supporter of EU: labour party
c. Supporter of soft exit: Overwhelmingly
conservative party
Resultantly, All of the deals were rejected.
Motion of no confidence against Theresa
may but she survived. However, she went
into snap election to cover bruised ego.
however Boris Johnson came to power
He proposed two deals
a. Deal by Theresa May
b. No deal
Parliament rejected both deals
Suspension of Parliament by PM
Called illegal by Judiciary
One option was left- Snap election
Conservative party won
B. Johnson passed the resolution through
parliament
It was decided that after 11 months they
would leave EU.
No Deal
 Transition era
 UK is no more part of institution bloc
from 1st Feb 2020
 Future relations between EU and UK to
be discussed
 Good Friday agreement
 From Jan. 1t 2021, UK will not be part
of EU’s single market
Post Brexit ties
EU want comprehensive ties with UK
UK want simpler free trade and agreements
on other matters
In case deal is not finalized, UK will be seen
“third” country, creating barriers and
obstacles to trade and will see and end to
deal, no deal limbo
Implications on UK
1. Sovereignty is back
2. Not a complete exit
3. UK faced political crisis for more than
two years
4. Two snap election
5. Gulf in mentalities
6. EU was twice requested for extension as
per Lisbon agreement
7. Judicial activism: judiciary termed
suspension of parliament as illegal
8. Rise in populism
9. 46% of Scotland voted for moving out of
UK
10. The future of Ireland depends Status quo
Implications on EU
1. Process of disintegration started.
First UK, France and Italy to follow.
Germany is not too content too. Hitler
supporters are there too
Greece saw rise in populist leader to helm,
who is also talking about with-drawl
UK opposed PIIGS bailout
Implications on Pakistan
1. Status of Gsp+ is in danger
Resulted in 1b Euros export to EU
2. UK is third largest trade partner for
Pakistan and 2nd largest exporting marking.
Now as the UK has the power to re-
negotiate, there is hope UK would treat
Pakistan better.
3. The future of remittances from EU in
general and K in particular are in
confusion. UK is third largest country in
the case of remittances.

This article is updated regularly as events

unfold.
The United Kingdom left the European Union —
now an economic and political partnership of 27
countries — on January 31, 2020, bringing to an
end 47 years of British membership of the EU and
the institutions that preceded it.
Attention has since turned to negotiating the future
EU-UK relationship beyond a stand-still transition
period that ends on December 31, 2020 —
heralding abrupt and major changes unless there is
an agreement.
Meeting this tight deadline was going to be a huge
challenge, even before the fierce onslaught of the
coronavirus pandemic. But despite a stalemate at
the talks, an extension to the transition period has
been ruled out.
"Brexit" — the term used to describe Britain's EU
departure — represents the most important
constitutional shake-up the UK has known since it
joined the six-nation European Economic
Community in 1973. It is also the first time the
European institution has lost a member.
The UK voted to leave the EU by 52% to 48% in
June 2016. It followed decades of increasing
hostility to the European project in the United
Kingdom, reinforced in recent years by a rise in
nationalist sentiment, particularly in England.
Other factors such as austerity and frustration with
traditional politics have also been cited as reasons
— amid a wider debate over the role of the nation
state and the rise of populism in an age of
globalisation.
The vote revealed strains between the UK's
individual countries: England (53%) and Wales
(52.5%) voted to leave the EU, whereas Scotland
and Northern Ireland voted by 62% and 56%
respectively to remain. Other divisions have also
been exposed: between metropolitan areas and
small towns for example, and different age groups
and social classes.
The referendum's aftermath plunged the UK into its
worst political and constitutional crisis since the
Second World War. Brexit day was repeatedly
delayed amid deadlock in the British parliament
over the divorce terms.
There has been concern that the prolonged,
acrimonious process has shifted attention from
major global challenges, not least the battle to
address the climate emergency — now
compounded by the COVID-19 pandemic and its
economic fallout. For many in Europe, the prospect
of an institutionalised rift between the UK and the
EU weakens the continent at a time when America
has become more isolationist, and China and
Russia increasingly assertive.
Latest developments and stories (to July
10):
Britons warned of 'thorough' EU border checks
after transition period ends
Coronavirus and Brexit talks are putting
Scottish independence firmly back on the
agenda ǀ View
Brexit talks resume in London after deadlock in
Brussels
Merkel warns EU must prepare for 'no-deal'
given current pace of trade talks
UK considering whether to join EU's vaccine
scheme amid pandemic
1. WHERE WE ARE
NOW: Negotiating the
future relationship
The UK ceased to be a member of the EU from
February 1, 2020, and is no longer part of the bloc's
institutions. Both sides now aim to strike a deal on
trade and the future UK-EU relationship, to come
into effect when the transition period expires at the
end of December.
Come January 1, 2021, the UK will no longer be
part of the EU's Single Market and Customs Union,
and subject to an agreement all legal aspects of
Britain's membership of the bloc will cease to
apply.
The negotiations which began in March 2020 cover
trade in goods, plus a wide range of other areas
including services, fishing and farming, aviation,
security cooperation, data policy, education and
science.
What does each side
want from post-Brexit
ties?
The European Union wants one comprehensive
treaty covering everything, whereas the United
Kingdom is seeking a simpler free trade deal and
separate agreements on other matters.
Although the talks involve elaborate technical
detail both sides have over-arching political
objectives. The UK wants to make sure its
European ties do not compromise its new
independence; the EU needs to show that life inside
the bloc is better than outside, and has consistently
said the UK cannot "cherry-pick" benefits without
obligations.
The deadline is the end of the year and the expiry
of a post-Brexit “transition period” that keeps most
arrangements from the UK's EU membership
temporarily in place. In practice a deal will need to
be struck earlier to allow time for the ratification
process and for both sides to get ready.
Without an accord, the UK will thereafter be
legally considered a "third" country by the EU,
creating significant barriers to trade and other
aspects of life. Both sides’ red lines have raised
fears that no deal may be reached, bringing an
abrupt, damaging “cliff-edge” at the end of 2020.
The process cannot be separated however from the
pandemic and the greatest economic crisis since
World War II, which call for international
cooperation and action to ease catastrophic
problems, not make them worse.
Read more:
What are the sticking points in a post-Brexit
UK-EU trade deal? | Euronews answers
Brexit trade talks: five key terms explained

'Level playing field': the
new post-Brexit fault line
The EU and the UK have signed up to various
assurances on future trade competition and other
matters. This includes a commitment to a "level
playing field" covering issues such as state aid,
social and workers' rights, the environment and
climate change.
These engagements come in the Political
Declaration on the shape of future EU-UK
relations, negotiated as part of the divorce deal
agreed in the autumn of 2019, paving the way for
the UK's departure from the bloc. The document
provides a framework designed to form the basis
for a future trade agreement.
The declaration relates to a future EU-UK
economic relationship where the UK opts for a
Free Trade Agreement (FTA). But in return for
zero tariffs and quotas, the UK makes "robust
commitments" to ensure "open and fair
competition".
However, the declaration is engagement is legally
non-binding — as opposed to the divorce deal's
Withdrawal Agreement, on the terms of the UK's
departure, which has the force of an international
treaty. Critics are wary that the commitments may
not be watertight — especially given the Johnson
government's avowed intention to diverge from EU
rules and forge an independent trading path.
In the original declaration negotiated by the
previous UK government but which was never
ratified, the then Prime Minister Theresa May
envisaged the UK remaining closely aligned to EU
rules and standards.
After the subsequent agreement was struck by her
successor Boris Johnson, some observers argued
that negotiations over future ties risked being much
more complicated and harder to resolve than the
terms of the divorce deal. The stalemate resulting
from the first rounds of talks in the spring of 2020
would appear to bear this out.
Running parallel to the Brexit saga has been the
UK's evolving relationship with the United States,
with which Britain hopes to strike a future trade
deal. Trade experts say the UK faces a key choice
over regulatory alignment: whether to stay close to
EU rules to access the European market, or follow
American regulation.
Read more:Four areas threatening to scupper
EU-UK deal on trade and future ties
Trade talks intensified
after months of stalemate
Following the UK's departure from the bloc in
January, the EU's chief negotiator Michel Barnier
and his team were granted a new mandate from the
European Council — made up largely of national
leaders — to negotiate the post-Brexit EU-UK
relationship. The UK under Boris Johnson's new
government also set out its position.
In June both sides agreed to intensify talks over the
summer to work towards a deal on trade and the
future relationship, after extremely sluggish
progress during the first few months of
negotiations.
Coronavirus puts a spanner in the works
A first round of talks in March was followed by a
six-week suspension amid the coronavirus
outbreak, which totally overshadowed the process
as it developed into a full pandemic. Key figures
including Barnier and UK Prime Minister Boris
Johnson were struck at various stages by COVID-
19.
Three further rounds took place by video link
instead of face-to-face talks, a step seen as
necessary but unsatisfactory given the detail
involved and the dozens of negotiators on each
side.
At each stage, both sides expressed frustration at
the lack of progress. At the end of the second round
of talks in April, Barnier effectively accused the
UK of dragging its feet.
He used similar language at the end of a third
round of discussions in mid-May, accusing the
UK of a lack of ambition. His British counterpart
David Frost agreed that little progress had been
made, accusing the EU of adopting an ideological
approach.
After the fourth round in early June, the EU
negotiator's language was starker than ever. Barnier
said no significant progress had been made towards
a deal, accusing the UK of backtracking on
commitments. Frost said progress had been
"limited" and regretted the remote format.
Read more:
Analysis: How will the COVID-19 downturn
affect EU-UK trade talks?
Post-Brexit trade: Row over state aid as face-to-
face talks resume in Brussels
Transition extension is ruled out
The divorce agreement allowed for a two-year
extension of the transition period to give more time
for negotiation, with an end-of-June deadline for a
decision on whether to invoke it. Both sides have
agreed however that there will be no prolongation,
the EU having accepted the UK's opposition to it.
Despite the coronavirus pandemic, Britain
consistently ruled out any extension
having legislated to that effect — although the full
effect of the global health and economic crisis in
the coming months remains to be seen.
Some voices had called on the UK to seek an
extension: they include the head of the
International Monetary Fund (IMF) Kristalina
Georgieva, the European Parliament's largest group
the European People's Party, and the anti-Brexit
campaign group Best for Britain.
Critics say the shorter deadline provides nowhere
near enough time to conclude a deal embracing all
aspects of future EU-UK relations. One possibility
evoked is for a simpler, more “bare-bones” trade
deal to be struck, leaving the detail of other policy
areas to be sorted out later.
Read more:
UK to phase in post-transition border checks on
EU goods to help businesses amid pandemic
Failing to collaborate over fisheries will sink any
hope of EU-UK deal ǀ View
'Serious differences' between EU and UK
Both sides outlined sharply contrasting positions as
they flexed their muscles in advance of the talks.
Officials in Brussels were reportedly taken aback
by the stance of Boris Johnson’s government —
which is seeking a far more distant, independent
relationship with the EU than the one sought under
the previous UK prime minister, Theresa May.
EU leaders have called for an “ambitious” wide-
ranging agreement — subject to conditions. Setting
out the EU's position, chief negotiator Michel
Barnier said there could be no trade deal unless
Britain agreed to the "level playing field"
commitment included in the EU-UK divorce deal
(see above), and did not undercut EU regulations.
He subsequently said that "serious differences"
remained between both sides.
But during the pre-talks period Johnson, other
ministers and officials, all highlighted the UK's
stance: that being able to diverge from EU rules
and standards was the essence of Brexit and the
UK’s “new footing as an independent sovereign
nation”.
Britain is seeking a narrower free trade deal similar
to those the EU has done with countries such as
Canada. Brussels stresses it has always been clear
that the UK’s geographical proximity to the EU,
and degree of economic integration with Europe,
mean the same rules cannot apply.
Read more:Britain must abide by EU data
protection rules after Brexit, says EU
Commission
Mutual accusations
Michel Barnier has repeatedly said the UK has
failed to engage on a commitment to respect a
"level playing field" in competition, while his
counterpart Frost has effectively accused Brussels
of moving the goalposts.
The EU chief negotiator has been equally
disparaging over the UK's stance on matters such
as governance, law enforcement, and sustainable
development -- adding that the British seemed to
misunderstand the consequences of leaving the
EU's Single Market and Customs Union.
On the British side, Frost accuses Brussels of
unfairly trying to tie the UK into EU rules and
standards, arguing that EU demands on fishing are
incompatible with UK sovereignty.
Read more:
EU more vital than US, say UK businesses
calling for more Brexit clarity
Does Brexit mean the end of Erasmus for
British students?
How will Brexit impact Europe's defence? |
Euronews answers
Why might December
2020 see another 'no-deal
scenario'?
Throughout 2019, the fear for many on both sides
of the English Channel was that the UK could
"crash out" of the EU without an agreed deal on
either the terms of the divorce or the future
relationship. Had that happened, legal
arrangements covering many aspects of everyday
life would have abruptly ceased to apply.
But the threat of such a "no deal" exit in January
2020 vanished with the UK election result in
December 2019. The UK went on to leave the EU
under the ratified withdrawal agreement. Its
provisions — on the financial settlement, citizens'
rights, and Northern Ireland — are now protected
under a binding treaty whatever the outcome of
negotiations on future ties, as explained above.
The new "no deal" that is being talked about refers
not to Britain's exit from the EU — but to a
potential failure to reach agreement on future
relations by the end of the 11-month transition
period.
The formidable challenge of securing a trade deal
with the EU in a few months during the transition
period — a task that usually takes the bloc several
years — means both sides could be staring at
another economic "cliff-edge" in 2020.
Failure to secure a trade deal would hit the UK's
economy but also those of its closest continental
neighbours — and Ireland. It would bring an
immediate change in the trading relationship
between the UK and the EU.
Other important matters such as cooperation on
security and terrorism, education and science risk
being left up in the air if no detailed agreement is
reached on future EU-UK relations.
Read more:
Belgian fishermen fear Brexit fish fight fallout
British fishermen fear that EU trade deal will
leave them out in the cold
British territory Gibraltar 'could stay in
Schengen Area after Brexit'
Brexit divorce deal: the
UK's exit terms
The UK's departure from the EU on January 31,
2020 took effect under the terms of the revised
divorce agreement struck by London and Brussels
in October 2019.
The deal consists of a Withdrawal Agreement on
the terms of departure, accompanied by the
Political Declaration on future ties (see above).
The divorce terms in the Withdrawal Agreement
cover matters such as the UK's financial settlement,
provisions for Northern Ireland, and safeguards for
the rights of EU citizens living in the UK, and
Britons living on the continent.
Under the divorce deal, a transition period came
into effect upon the UK’s departure and will run
until December 31, 2020. During this period many
existing arrangements will remain in place.
Read more: What changed after midnight on
Friday January 31? Not a lot.
The existing rules still in force during this period
cover matters including freedom of
movement (the right of EU citizens to move to
other EU countries to live and work), cross-border
travel and personal rights.
The UK intends to introduce a new immigration
policy from January 2021, with legislation going
through parliament to implement it. EU nationals
will no longer have preferential treatment, under a
points-based system to attract skilled workers.
Read more:
'Speak English' in order to work in UK, Britain
tells post-Brexit migrants
UK immigration policy: Is Boris Johnson being
fair to future EU migrants?
Britain's 'hostile environment' is destroying the
lives of those who contribute to the UK ǀ View
The Withdrawal
Agreement: a binding
treaty
The revised Withdrawal Agreement keeps the
provisions in the previously negotiated deal on the
key “divorce” issues: settling the UK's financial
obligations to the EU, and setting
out arrangements for Northern Ireland,
and citizens' rights.
These safeguard residency and social security
rights for EU nationals living in the UK and
Britons in the EU, and maintain freedom of
movement until the end of the transition period.
The arrangements came into force when the UK
left the EU at the end of January under the terms of
the ratified deal, and have the force of an
international treaty.
The main change from the deal negotiated by
Theresa May's government is that the controversial
Irish "backstop" contained in the previous accord
(see below) — to keep an open border on the island
of Ireland — is scrapped in the new agreement.
Read more:
What's in Boris Johnson's Brexit deal with the
European Union?
What the Brexit deal means for EU citizens
living in the UK
What the Brexit deal means for UK citizens
living in the EU
Arrangements for Northern Ireland
Brexit means that the border between Northern
Ireland (part of the UK) and the Republic of
Ireland (part of the EU) – one of the most
politically sensitive frontiers in the world — now
becomes the European Union's only land border
with the United Kingdom. All sides agree this must
remain open, but the historically sensitive and
complex issue bedevilled the divorce talks.
Under the revised deal, Northern Ireland will leave
the EU's Customs Union with the rest of the UK,
which wants to pursue an independent trade policy.
But in practice, after the end of the transition
period it will follow EU customs rules and be
subject to EU oversight.
The North will remain aligned with some aspects
of the EU's Single Market — and apply EU law on
VAT (Value Added Tax) rules.
Customs and regulatory checks will not be carried
out on the island of Ireland, but at ports —
effectively creating a new regulatory divide in the
Irish Sea between Great Britain and Northern
Ireland. The UK government has accepted that this
will mean some controls on goods, backtracking on
Boris Johnson's previous insistence that there
would be no checks.
This arrangement is effectively an insurance policy
to avoid a hard border — such as border posts —
and protect the cross-frontier economy between
Northern Ireland (part of the UK) and the Republic
of Ireland (part of the EU), post-Brexit.
It replaces the plan in the previous, rejected
withdrawal deal known as the backstop. In the
absence of a trade deal or an alternative solution,
the idea was for the whole of the UK to remain in a
customs union with the EU, while Northern Ireland
would be aligned even more closely with EU rules.
The backstop's removal means this arrangement
will no longer happen.
The revised agreement has similarities with an
original EU proposal for a Northern Ireland-only
backstop — which was rejected by Theresa May's
government — but is more complex, and has one
key difference in that legally, Northern Ireland will
be in the UK customs union.
The accord deals with the issue of Northern Irish
consent for these changes: Northern Ireland's
assembly will be able to decide on whether to keep
the new arrangements — but only four years after
the transition period.
Read more:
UK backtracks on pledge to avoid Northern
Ireland customs checks
What next for Northern Ireland after return of
power-sharing assembly?
Brexit is a rupture in UK-EU relations. But it
obscures a much bigger tragedy for Ireland |
View
2. HOW WE GOT
HERE: Brexit follows
decades of UK soul-
searching over Europe
The United Kingdom's place in Europe — and
vice-versa — is an issue that arguably was never
properly resolved after the Second World War, and
came to a head with the Brexit referendum.
Many in the UK, especially in England, have
always been sceptical of the political pan-European
project revered by many on the continent. The
antagonism towards the EU that surfaced during
Margaret Thatcher's premiership in the 1980s has
 been followed by decades of hostile media
coverage, especially in British tabloids.
At the heart of the debate in the UK is the balance
to be struck between two objectives: a desire for
independence, sovereignty and autonomy against
the need to retain access to European markets,
which, the EU has always insisted, means adhering
to EU rules.
The turmoil in the British domestic political scene
has cut across party lines. Internal party divisions
have affected both the UK government and
opposition. The ruling Conservative party in
particular has long been riven between Eurosceptic
and Europhile factions.
A history of UK-EU
tension
Check out our series on the history of the United
Kingdom's complicated relations with the
European Union:
 Part 1, 1973-1990: Je T'aime, Moi Non Plus
 Part 2, 1990-2004: I'd Do Anything For Love
 Part 3, 2004-2016: Should I Stay or Should I Go
 Part 4, 2016-2017: I Will Survive
 Part 5, 2017-2019: Never Can Say Goodbye
 Brexit Timeline 2016—2020: key events in the
UK's path from referendum to EU exit
Theresa May's deal
repeatedly rejected by
UK parliament
The referendum result in June 2016 prompted the
resignation of Prime Minister David Cameron —
who had led the campaign to keep the UK in the
EU. He was replaced the following month by
Theresa May, who in March 2017 triggered the
EU's Article 50 — giving formal notification of the
UK's intention to leave — two years later on March
29, 2019.
London and Brussels then negotiated a withdrawal
deal over an 18-month period, which was finally
agreed in November 2018 and approved by the 27
other EU governments.
The former prime minister insisted her negotiated
withdrawal agreement was in the national interest
and there was no viable alternative. She argued that
it delivered on the referendum result: an end to free
movement, an end to huge UK payments to the EU,
and an exit from the unpopular EU structures on
farming and fishing.
However, May had been severely weakened at
home by an ill-judged snap election in June 2017
which wiped out her majority in parliament. Her
government struggled on thanks to a deal with
Northern Irish unionists. But the EU agreement
brought hostility from both opponents and
supporters of Brexit, including many in the ruling
Conservative Party.
Thanks to an alliance of forces, the EU divorce
deal was rejected three times by the UK parliament
between January and March 2019 — causing
Brexit to be delayed and leading eventually to
May's resignation and her replacement by Boris
Johnson.
Read more:What was in Theresa May's Brexit
deal and why was it so unpopular?
Derailed by the backstop
To guarantee an open border, the backstop
envisaged the UK remaining in a "single customs
territory" with the EU, in the absence of a free
trade deal or an alternative solution. It proved to be
a major stumbling block in the negotiations.
Eurosceptic critics, including the Conservative
anti-EU European Research Group (ERG),
suspected it would have kept the UK strapped
permanently to EU trade policy. EU sources
pointed out that the UK-wide mechanism in the
withdrawal agreement was included at the UK’s
request, to avoid splitting off Northern Ireland from
the rest of the UK.
Northern Ireland's Democratic Unionist Party
(DUP), on whose support the May government
depended, has always vehemently opposed any
move it believes might separate Northern Ireland
from the rest of the United Kingdom. Under the
backstop, as set out in May's deal, Northern Ireland
would stay aligned to some EU rules.
Revisions fail to stop defeats
As the clock ticked down towards the original
March 29 deadline, the UK and the EU said they
had agreed a revised Brexit deal following weeks
of deadlocked talks between London and Brussels.
EU27 leaders had refused to alter the text of the
withdrawal agreement. But Theresa May said she
had secured legally-binding changes over the
backstop’s application. The British parliament had
voted to seek “alternative arrangements”.
The parliamentary deadlock prompted moves by
MPs from different parties to wrest control of the
Brexit process and allow a series of "indicative
votes" to explore alternative solutions to the
government's deal. But there was no majority for
any particular solution, other than an opposition to
no-deal.
Read more:How Brexit defined then destroyed
Theresa May's premiership
Theresa May's Brexit battles
Theresa May always struggled to keep the pro and
anti-European wings of the Conservative Party on
board with her Brexit plans.
Her doomed UK-EU divorce deal represented a
compromise. But the blurring of several of her so-
called "red lines" on the limits of EU power
sparked fury within her divided Conservative
Party. As negotiations with Brussels brought more
UK concessions, a string of government
resignations followed.
After the 2017 general election, which left the
Tories severely weakened in parliament, hostility
amid their own ranks to any moves towards a
"softer" Brexit restricted May's room for
manoeuvre.
Eurosceptics including the DUP strongly opposed
her Brexit plan and the subsequent agreement, with
many calling for the UK to leave the EU with no
deal. In early 2019, the Tories in particular
haemorrhaged support to the new hardline Brexit
Party.
Equally, several pro-EU MPs also opposed a deal
which, in their view, would leave the UK worse off
than it had been inside the bloc. Some joined calls
from opposition parties for a second referendum.
Both the Conservatives and opposition Labour
parties suffered defections of some MPs to a new
pro-EU centrist party.
Amid the parliamentary deadlock, pressure from
Tory Europhiles obliged the prime minister to open
the door to a Brexit delay — and engage in cross-
party talks, which collapsed after a few weeks.
Theresa May's fate was sealed after she revealed a
fourth plan for getting her thrice-rejected Brexit
deal through parliament. She tweaked the
legislative package and crucially opened the door
to a possible confirmatory referendum — a move
which angered many in her party and sparked
another government resignation.
Brexit delay brings European election
electroshock
In the wake of the repeated parliamentary defeats
for the EU divorce deal, the House of Commons
twice forced the British government to seek to
delay Brexit. In April 2019 EU national leaders
met for a special European Council summit and
agreed to a six-month "flexible extension" to the
UK's departure from the bloc, with a new exit date
set for October 31 — or earlier if its parliament
approved the original withdrawal deal.
But relief at avoiding a disruptive no-deal exit was
tempered by renewed uncertainty and frustration
for businesses and people — especially for EU and
UK expats.
The extension of the UK's EU membership also
forced the country to take part in the European
Parliament elections in May — and send 73 newly-
elected MEPs to Strasbourg in July.
Nigel Farage's new Brexit Party, which advocates
leaving the EU without a formal agreement,
came top of the European vote. But there was
a strong showing from pro-EU parties, in
particular, the Liberal Democrats, who wanted to
reverse Brexit altogether.
Britain's two main parties — the Conservatives and
the Labour opposition — were severely punished
by voters. Many Conservatives are furious at the
failure to “deliver Brexit”, while Labour was
accused of sitting on the fence.
The results indicated that opinion in the UK had
become still more polarised over Brexit.
'Get Brexit done': PM
Johnson launches new
drive for EU exit door
The prolonged period of turmoil in British politics
came to a head when Theresa May — who failed to
get her EU divorce deal through parliament —
became the latest in a long line of Conservative
prime ministers to be brought down by Europe.
The UK's stance towards Brexit took on a distinctly
harder edge when Boris Johnson entered Number
10 Downing Street in late July, 2019. The former
foreign secretary and London mayor took over the
reins after winning the Conservative Party
leadership contest.
He signalled immediately a reinvigorated drive to
take the UK out of the EU on October 31 — "no ifs
or buts" — raising the likelihood that the country
would leave the EU without a withdrawal deal.
The summer and autumn of 2019 saw the UK
government significantly ramp up its no-deal
preparations — since stood down — with more
funds promised. The Conservative conference in
Manchester had a new slogan, “Get Brexit done”
— which has echoes of the “take back control”
rallying cry of the “Leave” campaign during the
2016 referendum campaign.
There was further turmoil in the British parliament,
where there was stiff opposition to a "no-deal
Brexit". The government lost numerous votes in the
House of Commons, and lost its thin majority.
Several Tory rebels were expelled for opposing
Brexit strategy.
Johnson suffered a humiliating defeat when the
country’s highest court ruled that his government
had acted unlawfully by suspending parliament.
In the end Boris Johnson was forced to
compromise over Northern Ireland to win a revised
deal. UK law obliged the prime minister to seek a
Brexit delay from the EU, which was duly granted.
Read more:Brexit timeline: Boris Johnson's
month of turmoil in September 2019
Boris Johnson seals new
Brexit deal with EU
Opposition parties granted Boris Johnson his
much-sought general election after the threat of an
imminent no-deal Brexit in October was overcome.
In the absence of parliamentary approval for his
renegotiated deal by October 19, the prime minister
was obliged by law to seek a delay of three months
from the European Union.
On October 29 the European Council President
Donald Tusk confirmed that the EU had formally
adopted the latest extension of the UK's
membership until 31 January 2020 — with the
option of an earlier departure if the renegotiated
divorce deal was ratified.
The delay put paid to Boris Johnson's vow,
repeated many times, that the UK would leave the
EU on October 31.
New Brexit deal is struck — but UK bill is
derailed
The EU and the UK announced on October 17 that
they had reached agreement on a revised exit deal.
It came on the day of a crucial EU summit and
followed a period of intensified talks. The accord
was swiftly given the green light by EU national
leaders.
The deal altered previously-negotiated
arrangements for Northern Ireland, and envisaged a
clearer break for the UK with the EU than the
accord struck by Theresa May.
Boris Johnson became prime minister in late July,
but it was early October before his government
submitted a detailed proposal for a new divorce
deal to Brussels. He then threw out its controversial
plan for Northern Ireland to reach a compromise.
A bill to implement the new deal passed its first
parliamentary hurdle, but was shelved by Johnson
himself when MPs rejected the government's fast-
track three-day timetable to get it passed. Many felt
far more time was needed to scrutinise measures
that will determine the UK's relations with Europe
for years to come.
Read more:From deal to delay: what happened
with Brexit in October 2019?
How did Johnson reach a
revised deal with the EU?
In a nutshell, Boris Johnson made major
concessions over Northern Ireland.
Out went the UK's previous proposals — much
vaunted by Brexit supporters — for "alternative
arrangements" including technological solutions to
keep an invisible border. Instead, Johnson has
agreed to a different status for Northern Ireland
compared to the rest of the UK — accepting a plan
very close to one the EU originally proposed.
The EU also gave ground, re-opening the
withdrawal agreement it had always said was
sacrosanct. Dublin and Brussels agreed to replace
the controversial Irish border backstop that had
plagued Brexit talks for months, and opened the
door to a possible time-limit on border safeguards
with a new consent mechanism.
However, Johnson's change of tack came at a price:
Northern Ireland's Democratic Unionist Party
(DUP), until then an ally of the government, said it
could not support proposals that would create a
"border in the Irish Sea".
Arrangements for Northern Ireland were a key
sticking point throughout negotiations ever since
the UK triggered the formal Brexit process in
March 2017. Behind the details over trading
arrangements are fundamental questions
concerning identity. The possibility of new borders
— between Northern Ireland and either the Irish
Republic, or Great Britain, or both — is hugely
problematic in a region with a troubled past.
Tory election win ends
long Brexit deadlock
The UK finally broke the long-standing Brexit
stalemate following the snap general election on
December 12, 2019, which brought a crushing
victory and 80-seat parliamentary majority for
Boris Johnson's ruling Conservative Party.
The Tories campaigned on a promise to leave the
EU by the end of January, and the prime minister's
campaign slogan of "Get Brexit done" evidently
struck a chord with voters. The 80-seat margin
provided an ample cushion to put the UK's exit into
effect.
The main opposition Labour Party suffered its
biggest defeat since 1935. Under leader Jeremy
Corbyn — since replaced by Sir Keir Starmer, the
party's former Brexit spokesman — the party's
policy was much criticised. Its plan if elected was
to renegotiate a Brexit deal which would then have
been put to the public in a second referendum.
The pro-EU Liberal Democrats won fewer than a
dozen seats — despite increasing their share of the
vote — as the "Remain" vote was split. The party's
campaign pledge to stop Brexit altogether if elected
proved unpopular with voters.
The Scottish National Party (SNP) which also
campaigned to "stop Brexit", but via a second
public vote, won the vast majority of seats north of
the border with England. Across the Irish Sea, anti-
Brexit votes also came to the fore as Northern
Ireland elected more Irish nationalists to the UK
parliament than pro-British unionists.
Read more:
The road to Brexit: Boris Johnson's first six
months as UK prime minister
Could Johnson's election victory spell the break-
up of the UK? | Euronews answers
Tactics and pacts: Why is the Northern Irish
election result significant?
EU welcomes 'clarity' as
Brexit becomes a
certainty
EU leaders welcomed the "clarity" brought about
by the election result. Any remaining uncertainty
was removed after the divorce deal was ratified by
both the British and European parliaments — legal
requirements for its terms to take effect.
The European Parliament passed the deal on
January 29, 2020 by a large majority,
despite expressing concerns over the rights of
Britons living in the EU, and especially the rights
of EU citizens resident in the UK.
In the UK, the Conservatives' election victory
ensured that the legislation to implement Brexit
was duly passed by parliament, receiving royal
assent on January 23.
The UK left the EU on Friday, January 31 at
midnight CET (11pm UK time).
Read more:
In pictures: Brexit sparks delight, despair and
dissent
SNP's Sturgeon talks up Scotland's place in
post-Brexit Europe
Macron: Brexit day is 'historic alarm signal' for
reform in Europe
 even large profitable industries would become
3. 'No-deal' revisited: "uneconomic".
Fears of economic In April 2019, a leaked letter by the government's
most senior civil servant warned of an economic
damage and disruption recession, food price rises, a severe impact on
Britain's security services, police forces and legal
in 2019 system, and a return to direct rule by the UK
government in Northern Ireland. In early August
Well before the coronavirus pandemic caused
a leaked government document contained similar
havoc, in the run-up to Brexit many political
warnings.
leaders, institutions, companies and individuals
In November 2018, two major reports by the UK
warned that a no-deal departure would bring severe
Treasury and the Bank of England assessed the
disruption and economic damage on both sides of
potential damage to the British economy of various
the English Channel — with the UK being hit
Brexit scenarios.
worse than the EU.
In an assessment of EU preparations for no-deal
However, Brexiteers dismissed “Project Fear”
published in July 2019, the UK House of
forecasts and some argued that the UK could
Commons Library described the Commission's
survive perfectly well under World Trade
programme as one of "damage limitation" to
Organisation (WTO) rules.
protect the EU27 countries.
Although the UK has since left the EU under the
terms of the divorce deal, the concerns over failure 4. How does the
to reach a deal on trade and other matters
concerning future ties have echoes today. European Union work?
Government documents, published in early The EU originally developed after World War
September 2019 and codenamed "Operation Two, with the aim of promoting economic co-
Yellowhammer", confirmed a grim assessment of operation and trade between countries to stop them
the potential impact of a no-deal Brexit on October from going to war again. Its members' economies
31. Based on the government's own preparations are now integrated around a single market allowing
for a "worst case" scenario, they contained the free movement of goods, people, services and
warnings of possible food, medicine and fuel capital.
shortages. Nineteen of the 27 member states use a single
The heightened uncertainty amid a year of British currency, the euro. The EU has its
political turmoil in 2019 twice forced the UK and own institutions and passes laws affecting many
the EU — as well as people and businesses on both issues across the union.
sides of the English Channel — to step up no-deal It highlights the benefits of membership as
preparations, as the Brexit process dragged on securing peace, promoting freedom and prosperity
without formal approval for an exit deal. as part of the single market, safeguarding food and
Read more: environmental standards, consumer benefits,
What would 'WTO terms' mean for UK-EU protecting human rights, and enhancing Europe's
trade? global power.
Why I'm excited to do business in Brexit Britain The European Council is led by its president and
as an EU entrepreneur | View is made up of the national heads of state or
Theresa May's government published a series of government, as well as the president of the
papers — some updated under her successor — Commission. It sets the EU's overall political
advising UK citizens and businesses on the direction but has no law-making powers.
consequences and how to prepare for no-deal. It
said the EU would treat the UK as a "third
country".
British economic sectors reliant on close, smooth
arrangements with Europe warned of the dangers
of new costs and restrictions being imposed
overnight. Among those sounding alarm bells
were manufacturing industries — including the car
industry, food and
drink, chemicals and pharmaceuticals – as well
as aviation, the health service, tourism,
and financial services. There were also warnings
over farming and fishing — despite strong support
for Brexit from within these two sectors.
In August 2019, after the Bank of England lowered
its growth forecast for the UK post-Brexit, its
governor Mark Carney warned that in the event of
no deal the economy would suffer an instant hit,
prices would rise and the pound would fall, and