Britain and the European Union (EU), Signed a Deal to ease Trade and Bolster Security Cooperation, taking the Biggest step to Improve their Relationship since the U.K. Quit the Bloc Five years ago. EU Leaders gathered in London alongside British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on Monday to Unveil the Deal, which doesn’t Undo Brexit, but shows both Sides have Buried the Hatchet after years of Painful Wrangling. This has taken on Greater Urgency as European Allies look to Bind themselves more Tightly together following Russia’s Invasion of Ukraine and Trump’s (R) Return to the White House.
Starmer said it was time “to move on from the stale old debates and political fights to find common sense, practical solutions which get the best for the British people.” He was joined in London by Ursula von der Leyen, the President of the European Commission. “We in Europe stick together,” She said. The Deal includes a New Security Pact that will give U.K. Defense Firms Access to a 150 Billion-Euro EU Defense Fund, equivalent to $167 billion, Pending a Final Procurement Agreement including a U.K. Financial Contribution. There was also an Agreement to Harmonize Food Regulations and Slash Border Checks on Food Exports Heading from the U.K. to the EU. Officials said that there are still Details to be Worked-Out on the Agreement.
The U.K. will also Allow Access to its Fishing Waters for an additional 12 years, and Both sides will Launch Talks that will make it easier for Young People to Move and Work Freely between Britain and its EU Neighbors for Limited Periods. While the British and EU Leadership have cast the Agreement as a Major New Chapter in European Co-Operation, much of the Post-Brexit Trade Friction remains in place. Britain will Stay outside the EU’s Customs Zone, and Citizens won’t be Allowed to move Freely to Settle in One another’s Countries.
The Announcement “will reverse only a fraction of the barriers erected by Brexit,” said Capital Economics, a Research House. “As a result, the EU reset won’t give the U.K. economy the big boost that the government craves.” While the New Security Pact was a Key aim of Starmer’s Government when it took Office last July, both the U.K. and the EU have Intensified efforts to Lock-In New Trade Ties in recent months, as they seek to Protect European Companies from the Impact of the Trump Administration’s Tariff Hikes.
Brexit hasn’t Worked-Out as its Supporters Hoped and is now Unpopular in the U.K., with just Three in 10 Britons saying it was a Good Idea to leave the EU, according to a Ppoll by YouGov earlier this year. Since Brexit, U.K. Exports to the EU have fallen 21% while Imports have dipped 7%, according to the U.K. Government. Starmer has repeatedly said He won’t undo Brexit, which a Narrow Majority of the Country Voted for in 2016. In particular, He has Ruled Out Reopening Britain to Free Movement, where EU Citizens could come and Work in the U.K.
Starmer, however, has argued for Improving Ties to the U.K.’s Biggest Trading Partner at a time of Sluggish Economic Growth. The British Leader has Traveled widely across the Continent and worked closely with French President Emmanuel Macron on the War in Ukraine. The U.K. is hoping that by Rebuilding Trust with the EU, it can Eventually Encourage Brussels to Renegotiate Chunks of the Trade Deal it Signed with Britain back in 2020, said Charles Grant, the Director of the Centre for European Reform, a Think Tank.
Although Brexit hasn’t Eorked out as Advertised, Monday’s Agreements to Draw Britain Ccloser to the EU stoked furious Ppolitical Opposition, underscoring the Bitter Divisions Brexit still invites. Reform U.K., an Upstart Political Party led by Brexit Champion Nigel Farage, is Polling in First Place a year into Starmer’s Labour Government. Farage has Argued that the U.K. didn’t take Advantage of Brexit to Control Immigration, which has Surged since Brexit, or become a more Competitive Economy. On Monday, Farage called Starmer’s New Deal an “Abject Surrender” to EU Demands. Boris Johnson, the former Conservative Prime Minister who took Britain Out of the U.K., labeled Starmer the “manacled gimp of Brussels” for Giving Away Britain’s Leverage on EU Fishing Rights and for Agreeing to tie Britain to some EU Rules. The EU’s Post-Brexit Fishing Rights will be kept in place until 2038.
For Britain, the Security Pact will Open the way for British Companies to Access the EU’s New Defense Fund, and will also make it easier to move British troops across Europe. Meanwhile, an agreement on agrifood will reduce border checks in return for Britain following current and future EU Food-Standards Rules. The U.K. could also Gain access to the EU’s Electricity Market. In return, the EU will see its Post-Brexit Fishing Rights kept in place until 2038, a Concession that could prove a Political Flashpoint in the U.K. EU Fishing Rights in the North Sea, while only a Small Part of the Economy, Proved One of the most Emotive parts of the Brexit Negotiations. The Fishing Arrangements had been Due to Expire next year.
The Two Sides also Agreed to Start Discussions on a Youth Mobility Pplan. But in a Sign of the Political Risks facing Starmer over Immigration, they haven’t Agreed on any Specifics on what the System would look like. The U.K. and EU Failed to Sew-Up Improved Ties in several other Areas. There will be only Modest Improvement in Collaboration on Justice and Counterterrorism, with British Authorities still Locked-Out of Key EU Databases.
But on Two Issues that have irked Britons Traveling to the Continent, the EU gave some ground. It Clarified that EU Member States were Allowed to let U.K. Passport Holders use E-Gates at EU Airports, Preventing them being Stuck in Long Queues. And it made it easier for them to Travel with their Pets. In the wake of Brexit, Britain had hoped to Clinch a Free-Trade Deal with the U.S., but that hasn’t happened. Earlier this month, Britain Completed a Trade Deal with India. It then became the First Country to Reach a Trade Deal with the U.S., which Removed some but Not All of the Tariffs Trump placed on U.S. Trading Partners in April.
The EU Completed a Preliminary Deal with the Biggest South American Economies in January, and has set its sights on More Trade agreements with India by the year’s end.
NYC Wins When Everyone Can Vote! Michael H. Drucker
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