Brexit Made Simple – Issue 23, DRAFT EU FREE TRADE AGREEMENT

What is the issue?

Last Monday, Cabinet Office Minister and ex-Vote Leave campaign leader Michael Gove said the British Government would “table” the draft text of a full future trade deal between the UK and the EU.

But Brussels was quicker off the mark.

On Thursday evening, a 441-page draft legal text - drawn up by the European Commission and titled the "New Partnership between the European Union and the United Kingdom" - was sent to the remaining 27 EU members states and leaked in full to a number of respected media outlets.   

It was not formally shared with the UK Government.

What are the stand-out points?

Its stated purpose is to establish a “comprehensive partnership” between the EU and UK.  

It explains: “The aim of this partnership is to maintain, between the European Union and the United Kingdom, an area of prosperity and good neighbourliness, founded on common values and characterised by close and peaceful relations based on cooperation.”

The so-called “level playing field” - to stop UK firms gaining a competitive advantage over their EU counterparts by slashing workers’ rights and dropping environmental standards, as well as curbs on UK state aid - is a dominant theme.   

The document insists that “future levels of protection” brought in by both sides must be maintained as a condition of UK access to European markets.

A “joint partnership council” is proposed alongside 16 sub-committees, including one to oversee the level playing field provisions.    

In the event of any dispute over the interpretation of EU law, responsibility would be passed “to the Court of Justice of the European Union to give a ruling on the question.”

The document includes a demand that London notifies Brussels in advance of any plans for “major” new regulations i.e. before they are proposed to the UK Parliament. 

It sets out details of long-term agreements guaranteeing access for EU vessels to UK fishing grounds, with these arrangements reviewed on an annual basis.  The trade deal would see both sides authorising “the fishing vessels of the other party to engage in fishing activities in its waters” according to agreed quotas.

It also offers EU co-operation on data exchange and extradition in return for the UK Government continuing to implement the European Convention on Human Rights - which Boris Johnson says he is determined to opt out of.      

Are all 27 EU states onboard?

It seems so, although the document includes several blank sections and “placeholders” to indicate where additional text is yet to be added.

Has Brussels commented on the document?

Mindful that the details emerged by way of a leak, Michel Barnier - the EU’s Chief Negotiator – did not speak formally to the media but acknowledged the document’s existence in a tweet.

He wrote: “We’ve sent a draft agreement on new partnership to European Parliament and European Council for discussion.

“It shows ambitious and comprehensive future relationship is possible.

“We must give ourselves every chance of success.

“We will publish the text after our exchanges and look forward to working with the UK.”

Any response from the UK?

Nothing official, mainly on a point of “principle” because Boris Johnson’s Government was not sent a copy.   

However, we know that Tory Brexiteers will oppose much of the document’s contents.

What happens next?

The UK’s formal response will effectively be in the form of its own draft free trade deal which is expected imminently. Having had sight of the EU’s draft agreement, the language in the UK version is likely to be speedily “toughened up” (in Brexiteer terms) prior to publication.

The Financial Times has quoted an “ally” of Boris Johnson as follows: “We are producing the text because we are ready to do it.  It is not a bespoke trade deal - it is a text based on the precedent of deals the EU has already struck with sovereign third countries.”

It is expected that the UK document will be much more simplistic than the EU version and could incorporate the Tory Government’s desire for several smaller, stand alone deals as opposed to a single over-arching future partnership arrangement.  

The UK Government has previously said that it rejects any alignment with EU laws as they are updated.

It has also dismissed the EU's call for "level playing field" guarantees – leaving the door very much open to diminishing UK standards across a plethora of policy areas including competition, taxation, workers’ rights and the environment.

In particular, the Johnson Government will seek to exclude the European Court of Justice from any role in UK-EU relations from the end of this year when the transmission period is due to expire.    

Tory Ministers will also stick to their tired mantra of “taking back control” of UK fishing waters by limiting access for EU boats.

Dr Jason Aldiss BEM

Managing Director, Eville & Jones

17 March 2020

You can follow me on Twitter @JasonAldiss