The European Parliament has ratified the European Union’s post-Brexit trade deal with the United Kingdom. The vote was significant, with 660 Members of the European Parliament (MEPs) voting in favor, five against, and 32 abstentions.
David Sassoli, the President of the European Parliament, described the agreement as the most extensive deal the EU has reached with a third country. He emphasized the importance of monitoring the deal’s implementation and ensuring adherence to its terms by the UK.
This ratification formalizes the trade deal initially agreed upon on Christmas Eve, after nine months of negotiations. The deal has been provisionally in effect since January 1. It outlines the new framework for the relationship between the UK and the 27-member EU, following the UK’s decision to leave the bloc after 47 years of membership.
Following the European Parliament’s ratification, the EU’s member states are expected to give their final approval, after which the trade agreement will be formally concluded.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson remarked that the ratification provides stability in UK-EU relations. David Frost, the UK’s chief negotiator, noted that it brings certainty and allows focus on the future. European Council President Charles Michel expressed that the vote marks a significant step in EU-UK relations and opens a new era of working constructively with the UK.
Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, assured MEPs that the agreement has enforceable terms and that deviations from the pact by the UK would have consequences.
Without this trade deal, economic ties between the EU and the UK would have reverted to World Trade Organization terms, with potential quotas and tariffs. However, since the agreement’s provisional application, trade across the English Channel has seen a decline, with exports and imports falling significantly in the first months of the year.
The deal has particularly impacted Northern Ireland, which remains in the EU’s single market under the Northern Ireland Protocol. This aspect of the agreement, designed to avoid a hard border with EU member Ireland, has been a point of contention in its implementation. The UK’s unilateral decision to extend a grace period for checks on goods moving between Northern Ireland and the rest of the UK has led to legal action by the EU against the UK.
This legal action is part of a series of post-Brexit disagreements between London and Brussels, spanning issues from COVID-19 vaccine supplies to diplomatic recognition of the EU in the UK.
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