CDE News - CorporateDispatchBrexit Link

The UK left the EU at midnight CET (23.00 GMT) on 31 January 2020. A transition period is now in place until 31 December 2020. During this period all EU rules and laws will continue to apply to the UK. Virtually nothing will change for businesses or for the public. This will give everyone more time to prepare for the new agreements that the EU and the UK intend to make after 31 December 2020.

On 17 October 2019 the UK and the EU reached an agreement on the conditions for the UK’s departure from the EU (Brexit), and on a transition period until 31 December 2020. The transition period will not be extended. The UK has said that it does not want an extension. The option of an extension was contained in the withdrawal agreement. The UK and the EU had until 1 July 2020 to agree on a possible extension.

Both sides are now eyeing October’s European Council meeting as a de facto deadline, to allow time to pin the deal down before the transition period ends at 11 p.m. U.K. time on December 31.

During the transition period the UK and the EU are continuing to negotiate their new relationship. This includes agreeing on how companies in the EU will be able to do business in and with the UK after the transition period. They will also negotiate on security cooperation.

The new relationship will only become clear when the negotiations are complete, at the end of the transition period. The new agreements will enter into force after the transition period, which will end on 31 December 2020. The EU countries must first approve these new agreements. If the UK and the EU are unable to reach agreement, there will be a ‘no deal’ Brexit. This will happen at the end of the transition period.

Ci Consulta’s Communiq.EU is following closely the developments on BREXIT.

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UPDATED: UK to respond to EU legal action over N.Ireland by mid-May

14th April 2021

Britain has agreed with the European Union that it will respond to the bloc's legal action over how it has introduced new trading rules for Northern Ireland by mid-May, a spokeswoman for the government said on Wednesday. The EU launched legal action against Britain in March for unilaterally changing trading arrangements for Northern Ireland that Brussels says are in breach of the Brexit di...

UK, EU talks on N.Ireland are constructive, differences remain, says UK PM’s spokesman

12th April 2021

LONDON (Reuters) - Talks between Britain and the European Union on part of their Brexit deal which governs trade with Northern Ireland are constructive but there are still differences on how to overcome issues that have triggered violence in the British province. "The discussions have been constructive but there are still significant differences that need to be resolved," the spokesman told re...

Brexit weighs on French exports to Britain in February

8th April 2021

French exports to Britain picked up 4% in February but were still at only 84% of the monthly average of the second half of 2020, as post-Brexit trade rules continued to impact commercial flows, customs data showed on Thursday. France is one of Britain's most important trading partners within the European Union and many economists forecast that Britain's exit from the world's largest free t...

Brexit vote sparked surge in Irish passports issued in Great Britain

4th April 2021

The number of Irish passports issued in Great Britain rocketed in the years following the Brexit referendum, according to figures. The data emerged as it was revealed that the celebrated British author John le Carré went to his grave as an Irish citizen. Data issued by Ireland’s foreign minister, Simon Coveney, shows just over 422,000 passport applications were made in Great Britain in ...

Half of UK firms expect long-term post-Brexit disruption: survey

3rd April 2021

The majority of British firms have faced disruption with trade with the European Union since Brexit, with many expecting the problem to last for some time, according to a survey published on Saturday. A trade agreement between London and Brussels which came into force on Jan. 1 has meant some companies have had to deal with new bureaucracy and rules. ...

Brexit reality only hitting now, EU’s Barnier says

31st March 2021

he European Union's former Brexit negotiator, Michel Barnier, said on Wednesday the reality of Britain's decision to leave the bloc was only now being felt, years after the British 2016 referendum on membership. Listing the changes that Brexit has brought since Jan. 1, when Britain ended a transition out of the bloc, Barnier said trade barriers, limits on citizens' movement and work visas were...

More than a fifth of small UK exporters have temporarily halted EU sales

29th March 2021

More than a fifth of small British exporters have temporarily halted sales to the European Union and 4% have done so permanently, a survey showed on Monday, highlighting problems that have followed the Brexit trade deal. A trade agreement between London and Brussels that came into force on Jan. 1 has caused disruption and delays for some companies having to deal with new bureaucracy and rules....

Irish assets worth 100 billion euros left London due to Brexit

18th March 2021

Securities settlement for Irish assets worth more than 100 billion euros ($119 billion) has left London for the European Union in the latest adjustment in markets to Brexit. Pan-European exchange Euronext, which runs the Irish stock exchange, said on Thursday it had completed the migration of securities settlement for 50 Irish companies from Crest in London to Euroclear Bank in Brussels fr...

Biden sees critical need to maintain Good Friday agreement for Northern Ireland

17th March 2021

WASHINGTON, March 17 - U.S. President Joe Biden on Wednesday underscored his strong commitment to the landmark 1998 Good Friday peace agreement and the need to maintain the political and economic stability of Northern Ireland. "We strongly support that, and think it's critically important to be maintained," Biden said at the start of a virtual meeting with Irish Prime Minister Micheá...

UPDATED: EU to take legal action over UK move to change terms of Northern Ireland protocol

15th March 2021

Irish national broadcaster RTE is reporting that the European Union will take legal action today against the UK over its unilateral move to change the terms of the Northern Ireland Protocol. The European Commission will issue legal proceedings through two letters to the British government, following its decision on 3 March to unilaterally extend grace periods which eased the full...

Irish foreign minister says UK guilty of ‘perverse nationalism’

13th March 2021

Ireland's foreign minister Simon Coveney said on Saturday that Britain was demonstrating "perverse nationalism" by seeking to reach a trade deal with the United States before the European Union and questioned whether it was a trustworthy partner. "This idea that Britain can get there first is narrow minded thinking, frankly. It's a perverse nationalism when actually Britain and the EU should w...

Close EU scrutiny of Brexit hubs to continue indefinitely, says regulator

12th March 2021

Close scrutiny of UK financial firms' European Union outposts will continue indefinitely, the bloc's securities watchdog said, as regulators begin a round of new checks on how they are operating. Hundreds of trading and investment firms from the City of London have set up shop in the EU to avoid disrupting business with the bloc by relocating staff and assets. The costly investment was vind...

PwC survey ranks post-Brexit UK fourth most favoured investment destination, overtaking India

12th March 2021

Post-Brexit Britain has overtaken India to become the fourth most favoured investment destination according to a survey of chief executives of more than 5,000 companies, PricewaterhouseCoopers Chairman Bob Moritz said on Friday. The top three - the United States, China and Germany - were unchanged from the previous year's PwC survey, while Britain and India swapped positions. Britain's ...

UK exports to EU slump in first month of new Brexit trade ties

12th March 2021

Exports and imports from Britain to the European Union plunged during the first month of the country's new trade relationship with the bloc, according to data published on Friday with some heavy caveats. Exports of goods to the EU, excluding non-monetary gold and other precious metals, slumped by 40.7% in January, the Office for National Statistics said. Imports fell by 28.8% The ONS ha...

The COVID/Brexit cocktail: UK lost market share in U.S., Germany and China

8th March 2021

The United Kingdom lost market share in the United States, Germany and China during the COVID-19 pandemic due to global trade chaos, Brexit and poor productivity, according to new research published on Monday. The United Kingdom performed particularly badly due to a long-term stagnation in productivity growth, according to the report by Aston University’s Lloyd’s Banking Group Centre for Busin...

UPDATED: Britain will iron out technical issues with EU, says PM Johnson

7th March 2021

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson said on Sunday his government would iron out what he described "technical issues" with the European Union over post-Brexit trade. Asked about an article in which his Brexit adviser David Frost says the EU should "shake off any remaining ill will towards us for leaving". "I think this is one of those issues we were always bound to have in the early stages...

Nigel Farage steps down as leader of Reform UK

7th March 2021

Brexit campaigner Nigel Farage announced he would step down as the leader of Reform UK, the rebranded Brexit Party he launched two years ago to campaign for what was commonly known as “no deal Brexit”. Farage, who as leader of the eurosceptic UK Independence Party (UKIP) applied pressure on the government to hold the 2016 EU referendum, said the Brexit Party had helped the Conservatives “come ...

UK to publish post-Brexit defence and foreign policy review on March 16

6th March 2021

LONDON, March 5 (Reuters) - Britain will publish a review of its post-Brexit defence, security and foreign policy priorities on March 16, Prime Minister Boris Johnson's spokesman said on Friday. The long-awaited document, known as the "integrated review" has previously been billed by Johnson as the "biggest review of our foreign, defence, security and development policy since the end of the Co...

EU not interested to protect Belfast peace agreement – N. Ireland first minister

5th March 2021

LONDON (Reuters) - Northern Ireland's first minister said that the European Union's actions have shown that its priority is protecting the trading bloc, not the Belfast peace agreement. "What they're only interested in is protecting their bloc, they're not interested, as they claim to be, in protecting the Belfast agreement. If they were, they would not be taking the action that they're ...

EU court orders Britain to fix air pollution, in first post-Brexit ruling

4th March 2021

The European Union's top court ruled on Thursday that Britain had breached the bloc's air pollution limits for years and ordered it to comply with the rules, raising the possibility that the country may be fined even though it has quit the EU. Britain left the EU - including the orbit of the European Court of Justice (ECJ) - at the end of last year. However, it agreed to apply ECJ judgements i...

UPDATED: EU ‘simply can’t trust’ Britain as negotiating partner – Ireland’s Coveney

4th March 2021

Britain's decision to make unilateral changes to Northern Irish Brexit arrangements is "not the appropriate behaviour of a respectable country" and will erode trust with the European Union, senior Irish ministers said on Thursday. The EU promised legal action on Wednesday after the British government unilaterally extended a grace period for checks on food imports to Northern Ireland, a move Br...

North Irish loyalist paramilitaries withdraw support for 1998 peace deal

4th March 2021

Northern Irish loyalist paramilitary organisations told British Prime Minister Boris Johnson they are temporarily withdrawing support for the 1998 peace agreement due to concerns over the Brexit deal, the Belfast Telegraph reported. An umbrella body representing the outlawed groups said in a letter that the unionist opposition to the Northern Irish Protocol - part of the Brexit divorce deal - ...

EU vows legal response as UK moves unilaterally on Northern Ireland

4th March 2021

The European Union promised legal action on Wednesday after the British government unilaterally extended a grace period for checks on food imports to Northern Ireland, a move Brussels said violated terms of Britain’s divorce deal. Since it left the EU last year, Britain’s relations with the bloc have soured, with both sides accusing the other of acting in bad faith in relation to part of their...

UK fishing sector sees more job losses if post-Brexit export troubles not tackled soon

3rd March 2021

Britain could lose more jobs in its fishing sector if the current delays and increased costs involved in exporting to the EU post-Brexit are not ironed out soon, industry groups told British government officials. Speaking at an Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (EFRA) select committee inquiry, representatives of Britain’s fishing sector said small to medium-sized enterprises were especially ...

Brexodus from City of London to the EU slows

3rd March 2021

The shift in financial staff and assets from the City of London to the European Union because of Brexit has eased after Britain completed its full departure from the bloc, a tracker from consultants EY showed. Financial services are not included in the EU-UK trade deal that came into effect on Jan. 1, largely cutting off the City from the EU. Financial firms in Britain have opened subsidiar...

German exports to UK fell almost a third in January as Brexit hit

2nd March 2021

German exports to the United Kingdom fell by 30% on the year in January as the impact of Brexit turned Europe's largest economy away from the UK, exacerbating the hit to business from the coronavirus pandemic, official figures showed on Tuesday. The UK left the European Union's single market at the end of last year, raising barriers to trade. That final split followed more than four ...

EU auditors highlight risks of Brexit Adjustment Reserve

1st March 2021

In an opinion published today, the European Court of Auditors (ECA) raises some concerns over the recent proposal for a Brexit Adjustment Reserve (BAR). This €5 billion fund is a solidarity tool which is intended to support those Member States, regions and sectors worst affected by the UK’s withdrawal from the EU. According to the auditors, while the proposal provides flexibility for Member State...

Britain sets out blueprint to keep fintech ‘crown’ after Brexit

26th February 2021

Brexit, COVID-19 and overseas competition are challenging fintech's future in Britain and the country should act to stay competitive, a government-backed review said on Friday. Britain's departure from the European Union has cut the fintech industry's access to the world's biggest single market, making the UK less attractive for fintechs wanting to expand cross-border. The review headed by ...

Northern Irish Brexit issue is two-way street

24th February 2021

Britain must show it is fully using the avenues available under the Brexit divorce deal to minimise trade disruption in Northern Ireland before seeking concessions, a senior EU official said. Britain’s exit from the EU’s trading orbit in January has created trade barriers between Northern Ireland - which remains in the EU’s single market for goods - and the rest of the United Kingdom. Maros...

Northern Ireland parties take legal action against Brexit deal

22nd February 2021

Members of Northern Ireland’s two largest pro-British parties are set to take part in legal action challenging part of Britain’s divorce deal with the European Union, the parties said on Sunday. The Democratic Unionist Party (DUP) and Ulster Unionist Party (UUP) are to join other pro-British figures to challenge the Northern Ireland Protocol, which has created trade barriers between the Britis...

UK could declare Brexit ‘water wars’

21st February 2021

Britain could restrict imports of European mineral water and several food products under retaliatory measures being considered by ministers over Brussels' refusal to end its blockade on British shellfish, the Telegraph reported. Senior government sources pointed to potential restrictions on the importing of mineral water and seed potatoes, the report said. Main Photo: Workers organise boxes...

EU to allow continued data flows to UK following Brexit

19th February 2021

BRUSSELS, Feb 19 (Reuters) - The European Commission said on Friday Britain's data protection laws were in line with the European Union's and that it would start a process to allow a continued flow of police and financial data from the EU to Britain for the next four years. Financial data flows are important for businesses and police and intelligence services to be able to exchange records, ev...

More ‘Brexit’ companies shift to the Netherlands as uncertainty persists

18th February 2021

The flow of businesses moving to the Netherlands because of Brexit remained strong in 2020, even though foreign investment fell by a quarter as the coronavirus pandemic hit, the Netherlands Foreign Investment Agency said on Thursday. Amsterdam has attracted companies in trading and finance, medicine and agriculture, as well as logistics and distribution looking to secure their European operati...

Brexit causing supply problems for small UK manufacturers – survey

15th February 2021

LONDON, Feb 15 (Reuters) - New post-Brexit trade restrictions have pushed up the cost of parts and raw materials for two thirds of small British manufacturers surveyed last month, and a majority reported some level of disruption. The survey of nearly 300 firms, by consultants South West Manufacturing Advisory Service (SWMAS) and the Manufacturing Growth Programme, a government and European Uni...

UK downplays risk of EU poaching City of London business

14th February 2021

Britain on Sunday downplayed the risk of the European Union taking business away from the City of London after Brexit, saying the real challenges come from New York, Tokyo and other areas. Britain completed its exit from the EU at the end of 2020, but the last-minute free trade deal that replaced membership of the bloc did not include arrangements for free trade in financial services - the eng...

Britain, EU stress commitment to solve N.Ireland border row

12th February 2021

Britain and the European Union on Thursday reiterated their commitment to resolve post-Brexit trade frictions over the Northern Ireland border in the wake of a row over COVID-19 vaccines. Senior British minister Michael Gove and European Commission Vice President Maros Sefcovic released a joint statement after they met on Thursday, saying they had “a frank but constructive discussion”. They...

UK can’t expect ‘equivalence-based’ access to EU financial market

11th February 2021

DUBLIN, Feb 11 (Reuters) - The European Union will strive for close co-operation with Britain on financial services but London cannot expect "equivalence-based" access to the EU financial market if it diverges widely on rules, the bloc's finance chief said. Britain's new trade deal with the bloc, which took effect on Jan. 1, does not cover financial services. The City of London is likely to ge...

BoE’s Bailey warns EU not to pick a fight on finance

11th February 2021

Bank of England Governor Andrew Bailey urged the European Union on Wednesday not to pick a fight with Britain over its huge financial services industry after Brexit, and said the bloc was demanding more of London than of other trade partners. The City of London has been largely cut off from the EU since Jan. 1 and Brussels has said it won't be rushed into decisions on granting access for finan...

Road freight prices from France to Britain jump 50% in January

11th February 2021

Freight prices for moving goods by road from France to Britain rose by 50% in January compared with the same month a year ago after lorry drivers demanded higher payments to operate in the UK after Brexit, Transporeon data indicated. Freight groups have told Reuters that European drivers are setting higher prices to bring goods into Britain in case they have to return with an empty truck becau...

Britain to take much bigger GDP hit from Brexit than the EU -Commission

11th February 2021

Britain's exit from the European Union will cost the bloc around 0.5% of economic growth over the next 24 months, but Brexit will be more than four times more painful for the United Kingdom, the European Commission said on Thursday. Britain left the EU at the end of January last year, but kept its full access to the 27-nation bloc's single market until the end of 2020, when it was replaced by ...