An agreement with the EU on the terms of the UK's withdrawal
items
"Lots of requests for a step-by-step explanation of Johnson's plans to breach Protocol on Irish border. No problem." - Michael Dougan
13/09/2020
Lots of requests for a step-by-step explanation of Johnson's plans to breach Protocol on Irish border. / No problem. And by the end, you'll understand why this man is totally unfit to hold public office.
"[Theresa May] has allowed hardliners in the ERG group to hijack the government and hijack the country." - Yvette Cooper
11/03/2019
[Theresa May] has allowed hardliners in the ERG group to hijack the government and hijack the country." Labour's Yvette Cooper says that "instead of reaching out", Theresa May has allowed Conservative Eurosceptics to set the Brexit agenda.
The plan has brought some Tory unity, but Brussels believes it is unworkable.
Publications across EU condemn Boris Johnson’s plans to ‘disapply’ parts of withdrawal agreement
'F*** knows. I'm past caring. It's like the living dead in here': Minister's verdict on Theresa May bringing back her Brexit deal
29/03/2019
Despairing minister castigates prime minister's 'inability to engage in the most basic human interaction'.
'if UK passes law designed to break International law ... there will be no [EU] trade deal' - Simon Coveney
09/11/2020
"It’s for UK Parl to legislate as it sees fit. But understand, if UK passes law designed to break International Law, WI & Protocol, then there will be no trade deal. EU cannot ratify a new deal while U.K. is legislating to break a previous agreement. Trust & Good Faith Matters."
'Robbie Gibb asked me this question a while ago. I can’t say what he doesn’t know, but I can break down his article' - Steve Analyst
04/05/2020
1. Robbie Gibb asked me this question a while ago. I can’t say what he doesn’t know, but I can break down his article. / 2. I’m going to go through the article line by line to reiterate my original point, starting with the suggestion that our position is “all laid out” in the Conservative Manifesto.
'there will be no US-UK trade deal - period' if the UK government moves forward with the Internal Market Bill - Congressman Brendan Boyle [1 min]
09/11/2020
“This is a clear red line for us.” / Congressman Brendan Boyle says “there will be no US-UK trade deal - period” if the UK government moves forward with the Internal Market Bill.
Tánaiste says it is like saying ‘give me what I want or I’m going to burn the house down’.
'What were they thinking?': No US-UK trade deal if Good Friday Agreement is broken, threatens Pelosi
11/09/2020
Nancy Pelosi has warned the UK there will be "absolutely no chance" of a trade deal with Washington passing Congress should the government override the Brexit withdrawal agreement signed by Boris Johnson.
Japanese prime minister Shinzo Abe has said Theresa May’s Brexit deal has his country’s “total support”, adding that the “whole world” wants to avoid the UK crashing out of the EU.
He said Brexit was supposed to take back control and boost the UK's international position, but we are seeing "pretty much the opposite".
1. The Withdrawal Agreement (WA) is not up for renegotiation / 2. The Political Declaration (PD) might be tweaked cosmetically / 3. The future relationship will be negotiated during the transition period / 4. There will be no transition without the WA 5. / The will be no WA without the Financial Settlement / 6. A backstop cannot be unilaterally ended or it is not a backstop ...
A dangerous political void - Chris Grey
18/01/2019
There is now a dangerous void of leadership and policy at the heart of British politics. Indeed it would hardly be an exaggeration to say that, as regards Brexit, the UK no longer has a functioning government. There are no obvious solutions in sight, and the outcome is completely unpredictable.
'Do you think it's practical for us *the UK govt* to require/request multiple extensions?' / What does A50 have to say on the possibility of multiple extensions? / 'If you leave with no deal, you are no longer a member of the EU and you're treated as any other non member state.'
Tory minister David Frost proposes plans for an entirely new Northern Ireland Protocol – "trashing" a deal he once triumphed.
After months of discussions, the authority overseeing the rights of EU citizens in the UK has launched a legal action against the Home Office over the treatment of 2.5 million people who should be protected under the Brexit deal.
After Brexit, desperate Tories needed a new crusade. They think dumping ‘human rights’ could be it
10/08/2023
The drumbeats get louder as the call of the wild pulses through the blood of the Conservative party again. The front page of the Telegraph on Thursday splashes, “Cabinet call on PM to ditch ECHR”. On their headcount, a third of the British cabinet want to join Russia and Belarus as pariah states outside the European convention on human rights.
Shockwaves felt both sides of Irish divide over plan to renege on withdrawal agreement.
Boris Johnson and his team have only 3 months before Brexit, "very little time" to make significant preparations for a no-deal scenario says Sumona Guha, Albright Stonebridge Group Vice President.
The majority of voters in nearly all the 632 parliamentary constituencies in England, Scotland and Wales want their MPs to reject Theresa May’s Brexit deal, according to the most in-depth research into public opinion on the issue.
Government has spent £96,684 in past week on Facebook ads backing Theresa May’s deal
Actor and director Andy Serkis has parodied Theresa May in a video in favour of a People's Vote. Serkis reprises the role of Gollum/Smeagol, the schizophrenic character from The Lord of the Rings as May struggles between her EU withdrawal agreement and handing the vote over to the people.
The prime minister is due to attend an EU summit in Brussels today.
Former PM strongly critical of Boris Johnson’s internal market bill as Lords reject it
A “sea-change in attitude” is needed from the UK Government if Scotland is to be given a meaningful role in future Brexit negotiations with the EU, a minister has said.
Cross-party move likely to be put forward as amendment to EU withdrawal bill.
Bloc sources say Britain is trying to water down EU geographical protections
Memoirs of negotiations show how Brussels lost trust in Downing Street team.
The government is facing increasing scrutiny over its decision to use “committed Brexiteer” lawyers to provide advice on the legality of breaching the EU withdrawal agreement.
Former taoiseach Bertie Ahern has described the tactics of the United Kingdom’s Brexit negotiating team as “deplorable”.
JOE Biden will tell Boris Johnson not to let the row over Northern Ireland's Brexit arrangements put the Good Friday Agreement at risk when the pair meet today.
In a move rarely seen between allies, Washington issued London with a demarche: a formal diplomatic reprimand usually reserved for adversaries.
Former prime ministers urge MPs to reject legislation, saying it endangers Irish peace process.
Boris Johnson is facing a growing rebellion among senior Conservatives over his controversial Internal Market Bill - while former Prime Ministers Tony Blair and Sir John Major urged MPs to reject it, saying it risked putting the Irish peace process, trade negotiations and the UK's integrity at peril.
Ex-Prime Ministers Tony Blair and Sir John Major have urged MPs to reject the "shameful" attempt to override parts of the Brexit Withdrawal Agreement.
Boris Johnson accused of having 'no negotiating strategy' after reiterating Brexit demand to scrap backstop
20/08/2019
Just hours before letter to Donald Tusk, one EU leader insisted withdrawal agreement ‘cannot be reopened’.
Boris Johnson admits no-deal Brexit will hurt UK while dodging journalists' questions during rambling campaign launch
12/06/2019
Boris Johnson has renewed his vow to take Britain out of the EU with or without a deal on 31 October, but admitted that withdrawal without an agreement will hurt the UK in the short term.
Boris Johnson bid to tear up Northern Ireland deal endangers peace, US congressmen warn [1 min]
15/06/2022
Boris Johnson’s plans to tear up post-Brexit arrangements for Northern Ireland have come under fierce attack from Washington, with senior congressmen on both sides of the US political divide warning the “irresponsible” move is a threat to peace in the province.
Boris Johnson never understood what his Withdrawal Agreement with the EU really meant, his former chief adviser has said.
Boris Johnson has no intention of renegotiating the withdrawal agreement and a no-deal Brexit is his “central scenario”, European diplomats have been told, amid hardening evidence in Westminster that the government is expecting to crash out of the EU.
Ursula von der Leyen hits out at Britain over plans to breach agreement on Northern Ireland.
Under cover of the pandemic, his inner circle is sidelining elected MPs and pushing through laws with no scrutiny
Prime minister wants to overwrite parts of treaty he agreed at beginning of the year.
Johnson and prominent members of his ruling Conservative Party have publicly called for the scrapping or radical overhaul of the Northern Ireland Protocol.
‘How can we reproach other countries if their behaviour becomes reprehensible when we ourselves have such scant regard for the treaties we sign up to’, former Tory leader says
Prime Minister will not abide by political declaration following new election mandate.
Move sparks fears PM will use European security as Brexit bargaining chip
Boris Johnson has told Tory MPs he will not compromise on his plan to break international law over Brexit despite signs of a significant backbench rebellion, sources told HuffPost UK.
Democratic candidate had warned trade deal was dependent on respecting EU Brexit deal.
PM risks major confrontation with Joe Biden by persevering with internal market bill.
Boris Johnson's border solutions derided
25/06/2019
TORY leadership contender Boris Johnson's plans for solving the vexed issue of the post-Brexit Irish border have been dismissed as "fantasy".
Boris Johnson's Brexit bill one step away from being finalised after completing passage through parliament
22/01/2020
Hard-fought EU withdrawal legislation now needs only Royal Assent to become law, clearing path for Brexit on 31 January.
Peers expected to attempt to amend bill as it passes through Lords.
Boris Johnson’s claims about the prospects of rewriting the Brexit deal have been compared by the European parliament’s Brexit coordinator to the “false promises, pseudo-patriotism and foreigner-bashing” he is said to have used to win the EU referendum.
According to our study, the deal now being discussed would reduce per capita GDP by 6.4%, as opposed to 4.9%
Critics are in U.K. prime minister’s own Conservative party. / Top government lawyer quits as Brexit spooks markets again.
Boris Johnson’s next Tory rebellion could be on Brexit as Eurosceptic MPs wake up to the true nature of withdrawal agreement
05/08/2020
Senior Brexiteers endorsed the Prime Minister’s deal but some have now turned against it and want to see it replaced.
Boris Johnson’s ‘implementation period’ and five other Tory leadership Brexit plans already rejected or doomed to fail
25/06/2019
What are the Brexit proposals put forward - and why will they probably be rejected?
Brexifornia: Checking out but never leaving
08/06/2020
Brexit will never be over.
Brexit backstop has not been rewritten or 'undermined' by new agreement, says Ireland PM Varadkar
12/03/2019
'It does not reopen the withdrawal agreement or undermine the backstop or its application' says Leo Varadkar
MPs vote by 330-231 to give the Withdrawal Agreement Bill a third reading.
Internal market bill would endanger future trade deals, says Kim Darroch, the former British ambassador to the US.
Michael Gove appeared to confirm reports that the guarantees have vanished from Boris Johnson's Brexit Bill. But he insisted it'll be okay - because there'll be a separate law in the Queen's Speech.
Brexit deal vote result: Boris Johnson's Withdrawal Agreement Bill finally passes in the Commons with resounding 330-231 victory
09/01/2020
The Bill passed its third reading in the Commons and will now be considered by the House of Lords.
The EU has said the Brexit deal will “not be renegotiated” ahead of the crunch Commons vote in mid-January.
This week, the practical realities of what Brexit is going to mean came into central focus for perhaps the first time, with a new government information campaign.
Thierry Breton, who is also single market commissioner, believes downsides of leaving bloc are exposed by pandemic
Archbishops warn bill could ‘further undermine trust and goodwill’ among home nations.
British Ceramic Confederation open letter to MPs with ceramic manufacturing sites in their constituency.
No matter that they negotiated and signed up to the Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) less than a year ago, it is increasingly clear that they did so with little or no intention to honour what they agreed with the EU.
Lord Frost said the deal that he negotiated had "begun to come apart even more quickly than we feared"
Efforts by British negotiators to win changes to Theresa May’s Brexit deal are going badly, after talks in Brussels broke up without any progress to report and the EU Commission warned that “no solution” is in sight.
Brexit Republic - Ep. 16
16/11/2018
It has been a week of volcanic political drama: After 17 months of talks and dizzying mood swings last week and all weekend, EU and British negotiators dramatically sealed a Withdrawal Treaty text at 9 o’clock on Monday night, and RTE News broke the story.
Brexit Republic - Ep. 17
22/11/2018
Last week, a Withdrawal Agreement, this week a Political Declaration. A frightening acceleration of developments after two and a half years. RTÉ's Europe Editor Tony Connelly and Deputy Foreign Editor Colm Ó Mongáin look at the text, who's happy and who's not.
Brexit Republic - Ep. 18 Special Edition
25/11/2018
For this special Brexit summit edition, the Brexit Republic team unites in Brussels for the summit at which the wording of the Withdrawal Treaty and Political Declaration were endorsed.
Brexit Republic - Ep. 19
29/11/2018
A slew of UK economic forecasts depending on a Withdrawal Agreement, or a No Deal Brexit. How are the numbers looking for UK PM Theresa May in the House of Commons for that crucial vote on December 11? And what does Norway Plus mean?
Brexit Republic - Ep. 20
06/12/2018
Three defeats for UK PM Theresa May in one day - what hope now for the Withdrawal Agreement and Political Declaration passing muster next week?
Brexit Republic - Ep. 23
18/01/2019
What a week it has been! In the space of 24 hours Theresa May suffered a historic humiliation in Parliament and then promptly won the support of her party and the DUP. Will she cling doggedly to the current agreement text and hope the ticking clock will bolster domestic support? Will an extension to the Article 50 deadline be needed? Or is a second referendum now more likely?
Brexit Republic - Ep. 25
31/01/2019
After defending the Withdrawal Agreement as the only deal on the table, UK Prime Minister Theresa May turned against it, directing MP's to vote for it to be amended. ... There is no room to renegotiate the Withdrawal Agreement, no appetite to pile pressure on Ireland and no viable alternative coming from the UK, says the EU.
Brexit Republic - Ep. 27
14/02/2019
Last Thursday, lawyers for former Ulster Unionist leader David Trimble (now Tory peer Lord Trimble), initiated a legal case against the UK government contending that the Withdrawal Agreement with the backstop is in breach of the Good Friday Agreement, the Act of Union and the Vienna Convention. Author and legal commentator Joshua Rozenberg gave Brexit Republic his view of the case.
Brexit Republic - Ep. 29
01/03/2019
What form of words (if any) would provide basis for the UK Attorney General to convince the DUP and the Tory Party to support the Withdrawal Agreement?
The Withdrawal Agreement gets rejected again, this time only in double figures. So what now? RTÉ's Europe Editor Tony Connelly, London Correspondent Fiona Mitchell & Deputy Foreign Editor Colm Ó Mongáin discuss the prelude and the fallout.
The EU's long-held insistence on level playing field provisions continues. How does the UK see its commitments to the Irish Protocol and the Political Declaration and what impact will deviation have on its credibility in other trade talks?
RTÉ Europe Editor Tony Connelly, London Correspondent Seán Whelan and Deputy Foreign Editor Colm Ó Mongáin analyse the week in which the UK unveiled a law to break international law and the ructions that ensued.
Brexit Republic - The Revolver
18/09/2020
Mr Raab goes to Washington, Mr Miliband goes to town on Mr Johnson in another busy, busy Brexit week. Europe Editor Tony Connelly, London Correspondent Seán Whelan and Deputy Foreign Editor Colm Ó Mongáin look at the continuing external waves being made by the Internal Market Bill and go-slow negotiations.
Brexit Republic - Withdrawal Deal 2.0
18/10/2019
The backstop is dead, long live a new solution for the island of Ireland. Tony Connelly, Sean Whelan and Colm Ó Mongáin will bring you through how the deal was done, and depending on when you're listening to this, what are the chances of, to quote Boris Johnson, Getting Brexit Done and getting it through the House of Commons.
Brexit is on course for a lengthy delay after MPs rejected Theresa May's EU Withdrawal Agreement by a margin of 58 votes.
Tánaiste Leo Varadkar has said that the Cabinet’s Brexit subcommittee met on Monday to “essentially dust down and restart contingency preparations” in case a trade war develops with the UK.
Talks between Jeremy Corbyn and Theresa May to rescue Brexit have collapsed, making defeat for her withdrawal agreement bill next month near-certain.
Brexit talks heading for ‘crisis’ as EU warns Boris Johnson to stop breaking international law or face no deal
03/12/2020
UK set to push ahead with legislation that would break commitments made to EU earlier this year.
Brexit vote result: Theresa May suffers crushing defeat as MPs reject deal by huge margin
15/01/2019
Prime minister announces vote of no confidence in her government on Wednesday, to 'confirm' that MPs want her to continue in office
Brexit vote: Theresa May's deal rejected by MPs again despite winning support from Tory rebels
29/03/2019
Theresa May’s Brexit plans have been defeated for a third time in parliament despite a large number of Tory rebels finally backing it. The Commons voted against the deal by 344 votes to 286 - a majority of 58.
There are good reasons to believe latest move is partly theatre, but there are hefty issues at stake.
Analysis of the Parliamentary defeat of Mrs May's EU withdrawal deal. Interview, Bruce Munro, ODT, Global Insight, 17 January 2019.
Episode one watches as the Europeans’ respect for a formidable negotiating opponent turns into frustration and incredulity as the British fail to present a united front. At moments funny and tragic, it ends with the debacle in December 2017 when Theresa May flies in to Brussels to finalise details of a deal and is publically humiliated by her coalition partner.
It’s difficult to feel anything other than bewilderment and dismay at the events unfolding in Britain.
Brexit: Endgame - Fabian Zuleeg
08/09/2020
The UK Government's recent statements make a deal between the EU and UK less likely, regardless of whether that is the intent or not.
The financial settlement - often labeled the 'exit bill' or 'divorce bill' - sets out how the UK and EU will settle their outstanding financial commitments to each other.
With the UK election in full swing, the EU is already preparing itself for the next stage of the Brexit process: the negotiations over the future relationship.
Brexit: What happens next?
28/04/2021
Despite what Boris Johnson claimed on Wednesday, this is far from the end of the saga, writes Jon Stone.
If approved, divorce agreement will see the United Kingdom leave the European nuclear-regulation body — but many uncertainties remain for research.
Brexiteer erupts with fury after taking exception with Boris Johnson being branded ‘a liar’ [5 mins]
08/09/2020
A Brexiteer MP has erupted with fury after a Labour MP branded Boris Johnson a liar over his volt-face over his ‘fantastic’ Brexit deal.
Bernard Jenkin says MPs only voted for bill because Johnson promised it could be rejected.
"Rewarding Britain for its threats is simply inconceivable. Brexit means Brexit, it’s a self-inflicted wound.”
Britain in a tailspin - Chris Grey
08/02/2019
Beneath a lot of sound and fury, the main story of this week is that Britain continues to go round in circles over Brexit.
Europe Letter: UK’s reputation diminished as EU capitals digest declaration to break law
Legislation that breaks Britain’s Brexit withdrawal treaty will be debated in parliament next week, House of Commons Leader Jacob Rees-Mogg said on Thursday, a move which could further undermine talks on a trade deal with the European Union.
Brussels official says UK has ‘non-regression obligation’ to protect waters as part of trade deal.
The prime minister seeks to game and inflame a state of mind that rejects complex reality in favour of symbols and fantasy.
Business group ready to back new vote
08/01/2019
An influential business body has withdrawn support for Theresa May’s Brexit deal and is prepared to advocate a second referendum.
The group of 53 business leaders urge the prime minister to “take her deal to the British people” if, as expected, MPs refuse to back it when they finally hold the “meaningful vote” next month.
CakeWatch - Episode 17: A Very Brexit Coup
14/06/2018
Listeners are advised that this podcast contains very strong language from the very start, including scenes of an adult nature. Listener discretion is advised. / A hell of a week in Brexitland. We skim over it all before getting stuck into the way in which the House of Commons handled the Withdrawal Bill and the amendments proposed by the House of Lords. There is some swearing.
CakeWatch - Episode 31: Not the Foggiest
14/11/2018
Steve is back and vaping hard (sorry for the background noises) while he outlines options for amending the bill to pass the Withdrawal Agreement and Chris listens in increasing bewilderment. We also discuss whether the UK has really been the disruptive force within EU structures that it's been made out to be in some quarters (OK these quarters).
Nick Crosby joins Chris to wonder whether and how the House of Commons might yet find a way to reject the Withdrawal Agreement and #StopBrexit. Also Hostile Environment Lady jumps the Lie of the Week queue.
Chris and Tanja have no confidence in this government and reject its withdrawal agreement but more specifically talk about Brexit British attitudes towards Germany, where things stand for EU citizens as B-day approaches, and Brecht.
CakeWatch - Episode 44: Cox Blocked
12/03/2019
So the government has lost the meaningful vote on the Withdrawal Agreement by a massive margin - AGAIN - and now what? Should we celebrate? How will Brussels react? What are the options for and chances of extending the Article 50 two year deadline?
CakeWatch - Episode 4: Stand Firm on Fudge
03/03/2018
Chequers Cake, Red Velvet Cake, international cake(ism), and a draft Withdrawal Agreement
This week, Steve and Chris mullet over the draft Withdrawal Agreement and carp on about the transition deal.
"It is crystal clear that the measures do not alter the fundamental legal effect of the backstop, as previously and correctly explained by the Attorney General. The backstop will endure indefinitely, unless and until superseded by another agreement, save in the extreme and unlikely event that in future negotiations the EU acts in bad faith in rejecting the UK’s demands."
Canada Is Refusing To Roll Over Its EU Trade Agreement For The UK If There's A No-Deal Brexit
02/07/2019
The decision not to “roll over” the Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement (CETA) if the UK abandons its withdrawal agreement with Brussels is a huge blow to Britain's hopes of maintaining continuity in a no-deal Brexit and could severely impact businesses that sell goods to the Canadian market.
Beth Oppenheim asks John Springford what is in the 585 page withdrawal agreement, and Charles Grant outlines what might happen next: will Theresa May and her withdrawal plan survive?
We've studied Theresa May's withdrawal agreement to see how it compares to a no deal Brexit or remaining in the EU. See below how they differ on the key issues that will affect people's day-to-day lives.
UK PM Boris Johnson had been wildly happy about his new EU exit deal; then he introduced a law undermining both it, and the last round of trade negotiations. Speaking with two former permanent secretaries of the UK’s EU exit department, Matt Ross asks whether Johnson is applying firm leverage – or deliberately sabotaging the trade talks.
BORIS Johnson allegedly signed the Brexit Withdrawal Agreement on a "fraudulent" basis, the Court of Appeal has heard.
Members of the US Congress are to receive a briefing today on the latest Brexit developments from Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Coveney and European Commission Vice-President Maroš Šefčovič.
Last night’s Brexit negotiations were a charade and will ensure the prime minister is defeated in tonight’s vote
Former Tory premier says he has "misgivings" about Boris Johnson's internal market bill.
... apart from a few Churchillian exhortations to believe in a bright future for Britain, most of his proposed Brexit “solution” was very old wine in not very new bottles.
British Foreign Minister Jeremy Hunt claims German Chancellor Angela Merkel hinted to him that the EU would be willing to renegotiate the Brexit separation deal.
Did They Get Brexit Done? - ExplainTrade
20/11/2019
The UK Government has promised that if elected, their deal will “Get Brexit Done and End The Uncertainty.” But does it? If they are elected and their deal is passed, what will the UK know on Brexit day? What will they not know?
A disorderly Brexit would be a disaster for Britain and its citizens, German Finance Minister Olaf Scholz told Reuters, adding that the latest signals from London “do not raise excessive hopes for an agreement”.
Documents don't change Withdrawal Agreement
12/03/2019
Here is a quick analysis of the three documents agreed last night between Theresa May and Jean-Claude Juncker.
European council president also says remain movement has no effective leadership.
UK constitutional law expert, Dr Mike Gordon assesses the impact the Government's EU Withdrawal Bill could have on existing legal structures, over and above the Brexit process.
Draft Agreement on the withdrawal of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland from the European Union ...
14/11/2018
Draft Agreement on the withdrawal of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland from the European Union and the European Atomic Energy Community, as agreed at negotiators' levelon 14 November 2018.
Simon Coveney reportedly clashed with Jeremy Hunt over UK’s alleged attempts to isolate Ireland.
DUP minister Edwin Poots breached Brexit-imposed legal obligations by ordering halt to Irish Sea border checks, court hears
15/09/2022
DUP minister Edwin Poots breached Brexit-imposed legal obligations by ordering a halt to Irish Sea border checks, the High Court has heard.
Ed Miliband has dismantled Andrew Marr's defence of Boris Johnson's 'oven-ready' Brexit pledge that was made during the general election campaign.
Ed Miliband: Boris Johnson needs to take responsibility for once in his life – this Brexit deal is his failure
15/09/2020
The Prime Minister is now telling us is that his flagship achievement, the deal he told us was a triumph, the deal he said was oven-ready, is actually completely half-baked
EHIC after Brexit: what happens to your health insurance card when the UK leaves the EU, and if will still be valid
21/01/2020
If the UK leaves the EU with no deal, you won't be able to rely on your EHIC card for medical treatment in Europe.
Emergency talks called between UK and EU over 'carpet bomb' plan - amid warning over US trade deal
10/09/2020
Legal action is also reportedly being considered by Brussels, and a top Democrat has warned a UK-US trade deal is at risk.
Emily Maitlis tears into Jacob Rees-Mogg during BBC Newsnight interview: ‘You whipped up hatred and fear’
29/03/2019
'You whipped up hatred and fear with a language like that. You know what it's like to face abuse'
As the EU and UK continue to prepare for the trade negotiations, there are clear signs that all is not well when it comes to implementing the divorce part of Brexit, in particular the Irish Protocol.
‘We stand by our commitments’, says president Ursula von der Leyen.
Ireland‘s EU commissioner has launched a scathing attack on Boris Johnson, accusing the “unelected prime minister” of “gambling” with the Irish peace process.
EU description of Gibraltar as British 'colony' is result of May 'trying to reopen Brexit deal'
01/02/2019
Downing Street admits prime minister had warned Spain would exploit any bid to renegotiate withdrawal agreement.
Brussels no longer interested in negotiating with May, says former official. / Theresa May’s “bold offer” to MPs ahead of a final vote on the Brexit deal consisted of a series of platitudes and the restatement of negotiating objectives that have already been rejected, EU officials said in response to the prime minister’s appeal to the Commons.
Iain Duncan Smith says the financial liabilities signed up to by Boris Johnson in the withdrawal agreement were too great.
British government says it will respond to European Commission letter ‘in due course’.
The EU has accused the U.K. of failing to comply with its post-Brexit obligations toward EU nationals in Britain.
European court of justice could fine UK or impose tariffs or sanctions on exports.
EU launches legal action against Britain over Northern Ireland and alleged Brexit accord breach
16/03/2021
The European Union launched legal action against Britain on Monday for unilaterally changing trading arrangements for Northern Ireland that Brussels says breach the Brexit divorce deal agreed with London last year.
THE EU is launching legal action against the UK Government due to an alleged breach of the Brexit agreement.
EU launches legal action against UK over plan to 'illegally' change Northern Ireland Protocol
15/06/2022
The EU has said it is launching legal action against the UK over its plans to rip up a key Brexit agreement.
EU law expert, Professor Michael Dougan dissects Boris Johnson’s proposed deal to take the UK out of the EU if he is successful in the forthcoming General Election.
Brussels and Dublin defiant after MPs back move to seek fresh talks.
EU leaders vow to block any trade deal if Boris Johnson breaches withdrawal agreement as Ireland accuses PM of ‘unprecedented provocation’
12/09/2020
European parliament leaders have vowed to block any future UK-EU trade deal if Boris Johnson goes ahead with a bill which would violate the Brexit withdrawal agreement.
EU leaders ‘enormously hostile’ to another Brexit delay and will only give one for second referendum or general election
20/06/2019
EU leaders have “lost patience” with Britain and do not want to grant another Brexit extension when time runs out in October, Ireland’s prime minister has said.
'Violating the terms of the Withdrawal Agreement would break international law'
Boris Johnson has ‘no desire’ to renegotiate the Brexit withdrawal agreement - and no-deal is now his ’central scenario’, EU leaders have been told.
But under the proposal, the Northern Ireland-only backstop would remain in place indefinitely if a future trade deal is not agreed.
EU officials privately branded Theresa May's Brexit strategy 'insane' and 'pathetic', film shows
08/05/2019
EU officials involved with Brexit negotiations privately considered aspects of Theresa May’s approach “insane” and “pathetic”, a new behind-the-scenes documentary shows. / BBC camera crews were given access to Brexit officials in the European Parliament to make Brexit: Behind Closed Doors, a two-part series focusing on the team around Guy Verhofstadt.
Political declaration but not withdrawal agreement could be re-opened, Michel Barnier says.
Brexit coordinator issues warning over amendments to 'water down' deal, just hours before crucial parliament votes.
‘We are disappointed with the continued lack of reciprocal engagement from the UK side,’ say MEPs.
EU president Juncker tells Tory leadership candidates there will be no Brexit renegotiation: 'I was crystal clear'
28/05/2019
Several Tory contenders have said they want to renegotiate the deal. / The EU has once again ruled out renegotiating Theresa May’s Brexit deal, in a major blow to several Conservative leadership candidates who have insisted that they would re-open talks if elected.
European capitals have lost trust, says Irish minister – as Keir Starmer accuses PM of ’wrecking ball’ approach.
Brexit opportunities minister said UK could break agreement if it wanted.
The European Commission has again reiterated that the Brexit withdrawal agreement will not be negotiated, “full stop” – despite claims by Boris Johnson that he would somehow be able to reopen talks.
The EU has launched formal legal action against the UK for breaching Boris Johnson’s own Brexit deal. / Brussels said it saw the UK’s decision to unilaterally extend post-Brexit grace periods on trade in Northern Ireland as a violation of international law.
Spokesperson says withdrawal agreement is still not up for renegotiation.
The European Union said Monday it is starting legal action against the United Kingdom, arguing it does not respect the conditions of the Brexit withdrawal agreement and is violating international law.
EU tells Tory leadership contenders it will not change Brexit deal for a new prime minister
11/06/2019
A new prime minister in the UK will not be able to change the Brexit deal negotiated by Theresa May, the EU Commission has confirmed.
EU Commission warns time is running out after first committee meeting on NI protocol.
Message to Boris Johnson comes after citizens with UK job interviews say they were locked up
Top European Union officials have vowed to use all available measures to ensure the UK respects the terms of its Brexit agreement with the bloc as tensions rise over trade involving Northern Ireland.
Chief negotiator Michel Barnier warns of "serious difficulties" and accuses Britain of failing to engage on subjects laid out in the withdrawal agreement.
European Council chief Charles Michel has warned the UK its international credibility is at stake, saying it must fulfil its responsibility to implement the Brexit withdrawal agreement.
Brussels rallies amid elevation of Brexiteer Boris Johnson to UK's highest office, says it will stick to Brexit deal.
The European Commission has issued a fresh warning that it will not reopen the Brexit Withdrawal Agreement as Theresa May prepared for further talks in Brussels.
Pressure mounting for breakthrough ahead of EU leaders’ video conference.
Ireland's deputy prime minister has warned the European Union will not renegotiate the Brexit withdrawal agreement, regardless of who succeeds Theresa May as prime minister.
France’s state secretary for European affairs has confirmed that the EU27 are not prepared to reopen the Brexit withdrawal agreement, and that without a “new political line” in the UK or a second referendum, Britain must expect to leave the bloc on 31 October.
The next prime minister in the United Kingdom will fail in any attempt to renegotiate the Brexit deal, Michel Barnier has said before warning the new leader’s choice is to accept the agreement, cancel Brexit or suffer a damaging no deal. The EU’s chief Brexit negotiator said that it would make no difference which of the leadership hopefuls eventually succeeded Theresa May.
João Vale de Almeida’s main task will be ensuring Britain sticks to withdrawal agreement.
EU's Guy Verhofstadt attacks Boris Johnson for 'false promises, pseudo-patriotism, and foreigner bashing' over Brexit
27/06/2019
European Parliament Brexit chief says likely next prime minister is 'a man who continues to dissemble, exaggerate, and disinform the public about Brexit'.
The European Court of Justice is to rule on June 15 on a case looking at the legality of the Brexit Withdrawal Agreement and its impact on Britons who lost EU citizenship rights.
The European Parliament has branded Brexit a “historic mistake” as MEPs prepare to officially pass the Brexit trade deal later today.
European Parliament ‘will block’ any trade deal with UK if international law is breached over Withdrawal Agreement
11/09/2020
Leaders in the European Parliament have made clear a trade deal will not be ratified unless Boris Johnson backs down.
A former UK ambassador to the EU has stated that the biggest crisis in the UK's attempts to leave the European Union is still a year away. / Sir Ivan Rogers, who was the senior civil servant dealing with Brexit after the EU referendum until his resignation in 2017, argued that the UK has been mired in a "political shambles" since the 2016 vote.
Expert perfectly demonstrates Brexiteer hypocrisy over trade talks in just 90 seconds [2 mins]
14/09/2020
An expert has perfectly demonstrated the hypocrisy surrounding Brexiteer outrage over trade talks between the UK and the EU in just 90 seconds.
Commons bid to force ministers to negotiate continued access for UK students is defeated by Tories.
David Cameron has become the fifth former prime minister to criticise a new bill attempting to override the Brexit withdrawal agreement.
Fisking Frost - Chris Grey
12/03/2021
[This post will] provide a detailed analysis of an article written by David (now Lord) Frost in this week’s Sunday Telegraph.
Former Brexit Party MEP says Withdrawal Agreement he voted for has already ‘failed the UK’
21/07/2020
A former Brexit Party MEP has attacked the Withdrawal Agreement agreed by Boris Johnson has already 'failed the United Kingdom', despite voting for it alongside his party colleagues earlier this year.
He said he would deliver Brexit by refusing to pay the £39bn exit payment agreed by Theresa May until Brussels agrees to a better deal.
France warned that the U.K. is in breach of the Brexit deal after it denied several small European Union fishing boats access to its territorial waters, ratcheting up diplomatic tensions between the two countries.
Minister says withdrawal agreement including backstop will not be renegotiated.
“Do you not find it a little embarrassing that you're renegotiating it across such a wide area so soon after it was signed by the government and approved by this Parliament?” - "Not really".
Former attorney general lashes out as Tory rebellion gathers pace.
Former Attorney General Geoffrey Cox has said he will vote against the government's attempts to override the Brexit withdrawal agreement when it comes before the Commons.
Germany's biggest business lobby group has warned its members to prepare for 'a very hard Brexit'. Ian King speaks to Nina Schick, the German political commentator and Tomasz Wieladek, senior European economist at Barclays.
Germany warns Tory leadership contenders they won't be able to renegotiate Theresa May's deal
18/06/2019
Germany lined up behind other EU states and official to warn that a new UK prime minister will not be able to renegotiate the Brexit withdrawal agreement struck between the EU and Theresa May.
Britain would have no more than a few months to negotiate a new trade agreement with Brussels, a process that typically takes years.
Regardless of how you voted in the Brexit referendum, you deserve a say on the final deal.
Government accused by peers of acting like a ‘third world dictatorship’ over Internal Market Bill
09/11/2020
Downing Street says it is prepared to overturn any changes to the legislation.
Government Suffers Fourth Defeat On Post-Brexit Child Refugees' Rights – But Still Won't Budge
21/10/2020
"The only winners if we remove legal routes to safety for refugee children trying to reach family here are the criminals and the traffickers," says Lord Dubs.
The Prime Minister has negotiated an EU withdrawal agreement. However, it is clear from resignations and interviews that the deal will not pass Parliament. As no credible alternative has been proposed, the public must be allowed to vote on whether to accept this deal or to remain in the EU.
Hammer blow for May as attorney general says her renegotiated deal can still leave UK in backstop against its will
12/03/2019
Attorney general Geoffrey Cox has said that the UK can still be trapped in the ‘Irish backstop’ so hated by Conservative MPs, despite changes to the Brexit deal won by Theresa May.
The Brexit process has been a failure. At the end of two years, our ruling party is bitterly divided, the main opposition not a viable replacement for it, and the deal we have negotiated is almost universally opposed. No one voted for this to happen.
How do you solve a problem like Suella? The legal aspects of breach and termination of the withdrawal agreement
23/02/2020
Today’s papers bring another story that the UK might be planning to breach the Brexit withdrawal agreement – including the report that the new Attorney-General Suella Braverman is poised to attempt to justify this legally. So what happens if the UK (or the EU) breaches the withdrawal agreement is not a hypothetical issue.
Between the opposition, the DUP and rebels from the pro and anti-EU wings of her party, May faces an uphill battle getting her deal through parliament. / There are many more MPs who say they will vote down the deal than vote for it.
In conversation with Sir Ivan Rogers
04/03/2019
The Institute for Government was pleased to welcome Sir Ivan Rogers, former UK Permanent Representative to the EU... The UK wants an ambitious future arrangement covering trade, cooperation in foreign and security policy, data exchange and more. But negotiations on the future relationship will be much more complex than those on the withdrawal...
Inside the Deal: How the EU Got Brexit Done
24/01/2023
As a close aide to Michel Barnier, Stefaan De Rynck had a front row seat in the Brexit negotiations. In this frank and uncompromising account, he tells the EU's side of the story and seeks to dispel some of the myths and spin that have become indelibly linked to the Brexit process.
Internal Market Bill: Britain risks becoming a global outcast, with reputation for reliability and responsibility hard to recover
15/09/2020
Strange turn since the Brexit referendum is still bewildering for Europeans.
Internal Market Bill: UK’s five most senior bishops say Brexit legislation will fracture the country
19/10/2020
The legislation begins its passage through the House of Lords on Monday and is likely to be heavily amended.
Irish government says there is no prospect of rethink in Brexit stalemate.
The Irish Government believes the office would be a reflection of the EU's 'ongoing support' for the peace process.
Irish Justice Minister says UK's actions over Brexit have 'damaged trust' with Ireland [7 mins]
13/09/2020
Irish Justice Minister Helen McEntee says the UK's actions over Brexit have set talks back and "damaged trust" between Britain and Ireland. / She told Sophy Ridge it is "simply not the case" that the EU has threatened to block food supplies between Northem Ireland and Great Britain and bring in a full scale trade border down the Irish Sea.
ONLY ABOUT ONE in eight Irish people trust the British government, according to polling carried out by Ireland Thinks on behalf of The Journal.
Is Britain committing commercial suicide?
27/02/2020
A 19th Century trade agenda will decimate the most productive parts of the 21st Century economy.
The biggest crisis of Brexit to date actually still lies ahead of us in late 2020.
I’ve been talking to Brussels insiders and this is what they told me about a no-deal Brexit
14/08/2019
Even if Johnson took the UK out without a deal, he would soon come calling for his free trade agreement – and be presented with May’s deal once again.
The Labour leader suggested he would not seek to introduce a new immigration regime for EU citizens.
Jeremy Corbyn has conceded that Brexit may have to be delayed to allow Labour to get a better deal with the EU.
Foreign secretary says article 50 extension may be necessary if deal agreed close to deadline.
British people in France have raised concern about their job prospects after Brexit after several jobs ads were spotted specifying that UK passport holders would not be considered.
Brussels chief says US president agrees Britain should not ditch post-Brexit protocol.
Speaker says PM cannot bring back deal to parliament without substantial changes.
Brexit may be "even more brutal than expected" due to the UK's negotiating "failures", Sir John Major has said. / "This action is unprecedented in all our history - and for good reason. It has damaged our reputation around the world."
Boris Johnson agreed in the final hours of the Northern Ireland Protocol negotiations that there would be customs declarations on goods exiting Northern Ireland to Britain, despite the fact that just three weeks later he told businesses in the North there would be "no forms, no checks, no barriers of any kind…," according to a detailed new account of the protocol negotiations.
Senior Conservatives are not backing down on their rebellion against Boris Johnson's controversial Brexit legislation despite his warning that the EU could "carve up" the United Kingdom without it.
Ex-EU ambassador says PM’s ‘strategy errors’ will make good trade deal harder to achieve.
Johnson's 'no deal 2.0' virtue signalling
20/12/2019
"The first week of Johnson’s new administration has seen both speculation about, and the beginning of some answers to, how he intends to undertake Brexit. The outrageousness of that situation shouldn’t pass without comment."
Joe Biden has warned PM if elected he will not sign trade deal unless certain clauses removed.
Friends and colleagues say top civil servant in intolerable position after advice ignored.
Justice secretary suggests he will quit if government breaks international law in ‘unacceptable’ way
13/09/2020
‘If I see the rule of law being broken in a way I find unacceptable then of course I will go. We are not at that stage’
Labour accuses Theresa May of ‘empty rhetoric’ on workers’ rights amid changes to vital protections
03/03/2019
Theresa May has been accused of offering “meaningless empty rhetoric” on workers’ rights to win support for her Brexit deal, while quietly eroding vital protections in a no-deal scenario.
Corbyn faces opposition from at least 60 MPs to a customs pact with May without a second vote.
Brussels suspicions come as European commission chief warns Britain to abide by Northern Ireland protocol.
Bill hands ‘breath-taking’ powers to ministers, warns Hansard Society. / Boris Johnson’s legal justification for tearing up his agreement with the EU on post-Brexit arrangements for Northern Ireland has been branded “hopeless” by the government’s former chief lawyer.
Mr Varadkar said the current deal, negotiated by Theresa May's government, was arrived at because of the British negotiating position.
It is a "terrible political miscalculation" for UK politicians to believe they can get a better Brexit deal, the Irish PM has said.
MPs are due to vote on the prime minister’s withdrawal deal within days.
Lord Chancellor says the UK's plan to override the Brexit deal is "an insurance policy" - Sky News [18 mins]
13/09/2020
Lord Chancellor Robert Buckland has told Sophy Ridge the UK's plan to override the Brexit deal is "an insurance policy" if negotiations with the EU fail and it "isn't something we want to have to use".
"Families should be together," says Lord Dubs, who fled the Nazis as a child and led peers' immigration bill revolt.
PM on collision course with Joe Biden and EU if he pushes ahead with "lamentable" proposals.
French President Emmanuel Macron offered on Saturday to reset relations with Britain as long as Prime Minister Boris Johnson stands by the Brexit divorce deal he signed with the European Union.
A majority of the country now think Britain should remain inside the European Union, according to a new poll released days before the critical Brexit vote in parliament.
Shadow business secretary says plan to bring PM’s deal back to Commons is dangerous. / The government is refusing to budge on Labour’s central demand for a permanent customs union in cross-party talks on Brexit, according to Rebecca Long-Bailey, the shadow business secretary.
British Prime Minister Theresa May has written to the European Union to delay Brexit until 30 June. / Mrs May said she wanted an orderly exit from the EU and that she intended to bring her twice-defeated divorce deal back to parliament, though she did not say when.
Now that British Prime Minister Theresa May's Brexit deal has been rejected by parliament, it is time for the European Union to concentrate on preparing for a no-deal Brexit. Because a deal with the UK is not currently possible.
MEPs urged the European Commission to have clear procedures allowing the EU to take retaliatory measures including sanctions against the UK if it refuses to implement the terms of the Brexit agreement.
MICHAEL Gove has suggested that EU officials may need to cross the border into the north in order to oversee checks on goods.
Michel Barnier schools Mark Francois on the Brexit deal he backed in the House of Commons
10/07/2020
Michel Barnier has schooled Brexiteer MP Mark Francois on the Withdrawal Agreement that he and his European Research Group (ERG) colleagues voted for, and told him that him there was no “added value” in leaving the EU.
Michel Barnier: 'UK cannot refuse Brexit transition extension and slow down talks at the same time'
24/04/2020
The EU's chief negotiator Michel Barnier has accused the UK of dragging its feet over post-Brexit negotiations, at the end of the second round of talks on the future relationship.
Minister admits changes to Brexit deal would break international law - Channel 4 News [15 mins]
08/09/2020
The Northern Ireland secretary admitted that the Government was intending to break international law - specifically the EU Withdrawal Agreement, which sets out how Britain and the EU would agree new rules on trade between Britain and Northern Ireland.
George Freeman tells HuffPost UK that trading on WTO terms would be "very damaging" in the long-run.
Ministers are planning new legislation that would override a key part of last year's EU withdrawal agreement.
More than 1,000 London business owners today warned that the economy faces damage even if Theresa May manages to pass her Brexit deal.
The Brexit withdrawal agreement bill clears the House of Commons thanks to Boris Johnson's 80-seat majority.
MPs have given their final backing to the bill that will implement the UK government's Brexit deal.
MPs Have Just One Day To Signal Support For Theresa May's Brexit Deal – Or Face Long Delay
18/03/2019
The PM will ask EU for long Article 50 extension if the deal is not passed this week.
MPs have voted overwhelmingly to seek a delay in the UK's exit from the European Union, setting the stage for British Prime Minister Theresa May to renew efforts to get her divorce deal approved by parliament next week.
‘If we have a populist in government who is flouting convention and acting in a way that bypasses the sovereignty of parliament, parliament will respond accordingly’
MPs reject May's EU withdrawal agreement
29/03/2019
MPs reject Theresa May’s EU withdrawal agreement by 344 votes to 286, a majority of 58, throwing UK’s Brexit plans into more confusion.
PM faces calls to quit after Commons votes down her agreement for third time.
No sooner had Theresa May announced that she was bringing her withdrawal agreement back to the Commons for a fourth time in early June than her Brexiteer backbenchers said once again that they wouldn’t support it.
Brexiter Tories and DUP united in opposition to bill with SNP, Lib Dem and Labour remainers. / MPs on all sides of the Brexit divide have vowed to vote down Theresa May’s withdrawal agreement when the government brings the bill to the House of Commons next month.
Richard Porritt, Steve Anglesey and Geri Scott are back amid more Brexit chaos. Geri takes us behind the scenes on a chaotic night in Westminster while Steve and Richard discuss why no Brexiteers believe the EU when they say 'non'.
New legislation will erode trust and could have implications for the UK’s international reputation
08/09/2020
European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen warned Boris Johnson not to break international law by attempting to redefine the terms of the protocol.
Decision by Northern Ireland’s MLAs will not affect UK’s departure from EU at end of month.
The Northern Ireland Assembly has passed a motion withholding consent for the UK's withdrawal from the European Union.
The UK government has announced further delays to some Irish Sea border checks. / The checks are a requirement of the Northern Ireland Protocol, a deal reached by the UK and EU in 2019.
Spokesman for Boris Johnson says hopes of meeting deadline in December are dwindling
Tánaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Coveney has said that Ireland would not be carrying out bilateral negotiations with the UK in relation to no-deal Brexit planning.
No deal is back on the Brexit table
12/06/2020
“Senior No 10 sources” have been at it again. This time, telling the Sunday Times that the UK is prepared to walk away from the Brexit negotiations should the EU fail to display greater flexibility.
Parliament will block a no-deal Brexit if unelected people behind Prime Minister Boris Johnson try to wrench Britain out of the European Union on Oct. 31 without agreement, former finance minister Philip Hammond said on Wednesday.
Leo Varadkar says UK and EU will still have to negotiate, with same problems on agenda.
The expected demise of Theresa May’s Brexit plan has sparked open feuding over what comes next, with the chancellor, Philip Hammond, arguing that proponents of a no-deal Brexit are betraying the referendum result.
No-deal Brexit: Dutch PM Mark Rutte says Boris Johnson’s plans for a transition period without an agreement can’t happen
20/06/2019
The Dutch Prime Minister has said Boris Johnson’s ideas about implementing a transition period after a no-deal Brexit are not possible.
No-deal Brexit: Government accused of playing ‘blame game’ as Gove says EU refusing to negotiate
06/08/2019
The Government has been accused of trying to play the “blame game” over a no-deal Brexit, as Michael Gove claimed that the EU was refusing to negotiate with Britain.
A top European Union official dealing with the United Kingdom says that a cliff-edge rupture between the two without even a basic trade deal by the end of the year is becoming more likely by the day.
EU leaders have stressed the Northern Ireland protocol must be implemented fully by Boris Johnson to respect the 'rule of law' during a press conference at the G7 in Cornwall on Thursday.
Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Coveney has responded to UK prime minister Boris Johnson’s assertion that the legislation to set aside aspects of the Northern Ireland protocol is “not a big deal”.
A government minister has said a new bill to amend the UK's Brexit deal with the EU will "break international law".
The JCWG on Ireland/Northern Ireland meets for the first time today. What is it and why should we care?
One thing Johnson’s victory doesn’t change: he’s still lying about Ireland - Fintan O'Toole
15/12/2019
His false claims about the withdrawal agreement reveal an utter lack of interest in Brexit’s consequences for Belfast and Dublin.
Owen Paterson's role in Brexit - Chris Grey
07/11/2021
It’s probably fair to say that Owen Paterson was not a household name until the events that led to his resignation last week. However, he played a significant role in the Brexit saga, albeit of a particular sort.
Peers inflict heaviest defeat for more than 20 years over bill that will break international law
20/10/2020
Warning that legislation ‘would undermine rule of law and damage reputation of UK’ passes with thumping majority of 226.
The list of bizarre things Boris Johnson is proposing to do to an international treaty he negotiated is growing. The target of these notions is the Northern Ireland protocol, which parliament ratified as part of the UK-EU withdrawal agreement more than a year ago.
We demand a People's Vote
The Brexit deal satisfies no one and solves nothing.
It shows that what was promised can't be delivered.
It's a much worse deal than the one we've already got in the EU.
If approved it means Brexit will go on forever.
Office for Budget Responsibility predicts 'negligible' effect - warning 'uncertainty' will only be lifted after 'several years'.
Labour's Lord Falconer tells HuffPost UK internal market bill could cost Britain a "terrible price" with peers set to defeat government.
Boris Johnson’s claims he will get Brexit done are “diplomatic amateurism” and his deal will be even harder to achieve than Theresa May’s, a former ambassador to the EU has warned.
Post-Brexit spouses aren’t protected by the Withdrawal Agreement, Court of Appeal confirms
01/08/2023
If you married an EU national in the UK after 31 December 2020, you can’t get leave to remain under the EU Settlement Scheme unless you previously had or applied for an EEA residence card or family permit as their durable partner.
Preparing for the withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union on 30 March 2019: Implementing the Commission’s Contingency Action Plan - European Commission
19/12/2018
This Communication explains the measures that the Commission adopted today, 19 December 2018, in response to that call, together with other crucial steps in the implementation of its Contingency Action Plan.
EU law expert, Professor Michael Dougan has read all 585 pages of Theresa May's Brexit deal and offers his assessment of the proposal here.
The Queen’s Speech will be delayed until Brexit is delivered, Theresa May has said – despite no sign of a breakthrough at Westminster to end the stalemate. / The prime minister’s spokesman said a new session of parliament – due to get underway in June – would not begin until the withdrawal agreement had been ratified.
Sabine Weyand, the EU's Deputy Brexit negotiator, gives her thoughts in a panel discussion on the Irish backstop, Theresa May's Brexit deal and the EU's future relationship with the UK.
Remainiacs Ep. 102 - BREXIT: FINAL FANTASY? with special guests LAYLA MORAN MP and Tim McInerney of The Irish Passport
13/03/2019
The flaming wreckage of The Deal is all around us (yet again) but what happens next? Can Theresa May salvage anything from her plans and career? Is there enough turd polish around to give the Deal another go-round? What even is Malthouse 2.0? And is it democratically necessary to give the people the option to vote for catastrophe?
Remainiacs Ep. 117: VOYAGE TO THE BOTTOM OF THE BARREL Our trade future with guest Dmitry Grozoubinski
23/05/2019
Negotiator and trade expert Dmitry Grozoubinski explains the reality of No Deal. / What’s in the WAB and has any May idea ever died quite so quickly? Final learnings from the EU Election campaign that everyone pretended never was. The pros and cons of milkshaking. Astroturfing for fun and profit.
The day after the May Deal finally fell to a record defeat (with an even worse vote than her projected result if she hadn’t bottled it in December) Ian Dunt, Naomi Smith and Dorian Lynskey convene to ask what the hell is going on and how will it all end.
Remainiacs Ep. 95 - SQUEAKY BREXIT TIME? Breaking down Plan B with special guest Steve Analyst
25/01/2019
Business intelligence expert and super-tweeter STEVE ANALYST joins us to see where the Undead Deal goes next, and explore the myriad amendments it’ll undergo next week. And how are YOU going to vote in the 2019 European Elections? Because you know what, you might have to…
The statements came today after reports suggested that Prime Minister Boris Johnson ordered his Brexit team to find ways to "get around" the Northern Ireland protocol.
The Republic’s EU Affairs Minister has urged Britain not to jeopardise the peace process in its dispute over new trading arrangements with the EU.
The UK’s Brexit Minister has written to the EU encouraging it to agree to ‘ring-fence’ the rights of Britons living abroad in the EU and EU citizens abroad in the UK – however contrary to some reports, the EU has issued no response to this as yet.
The speaker of Britain’s House of Commons dealt a potentially fatal blow to Prime Minister Theresa May’s ailing Brexit deal on Monday, saying the government couldn’t keep asking lawmakers to vote on the same deal they have already rejected twice.
Unprecedented event will send 'strong message' to Westminster, minister says.
It will recommend Holyrood does not consent to the UK Government's Withdrawal Agreement Bill.
MSPs voted to reject the UK Bill by votes to 92 votes to 29.
Irish premier says it is 'alarming' that Tory leadership contenders want to remove safeguard against hard border.
One of Boris Johnson’s most senior law officers has quit in protest at the government’s plans to break international law over Brexit.
Government ignored legal advice over proposed withdrawal agreement changes.
Peers back three amendments including right of EU citizens to physical proof of right to stay in UK.
Sidestepping agreement on Northern Ireland could put trade deal with US at risk, Johnson warned
23/02/2020
Ministers ‘must not be allowed to sidestep their responsibilities,’ says Sinn Fein MP.
A formal division was not required as there were no dissenting votes.
The First Minister has confirmed SNP MPs will vote against the new UK-EU withdrawal agreement.
The First Minister has branded the Prime Minister "deeply irresponsible" after Theresa May attacked MPs for not supporting her Brexit deal.
Technical note on the implementation of the Protocol on Ireland / Northern Ireland - European Commission, Task Force for Relations with the Unite Kingdom
30/04/2020
This technical note was transmitted to theEuropean Parliament and Council on 30 April 2020. Published on the UKTF website on Thursday 30 April 2020
EU chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier has indicated he does not believe the UK will have enough time to approve Theresa May’s withdrawal deal by the scheduled exit date of March 29.
What are the legal consequences of leaving the EU for the UK? Those consequences are manifold, but some of the key aspects are set out in the Withdrawal Agreement Act (the ‘new Act’), which Parliament passed in January.
MPs told a further ‘meaningful vote’ will be ruled out of order if the motion is 'the same or substantially the same’
Commons votes 344 to 286 against the PM. / Theresa May has suffered another significant defeat to her Brexit plan, after MPs voted on Friday to reject her withdrawal agreement by a majority of 58.
Theresa May is battling to save her Brexit strategy amid warnings that she is heading for another crushing defeat in Tuesday’s crunch Commons vote.
Shadow Brexit secretary to call for MPs to hold ‘open and frank debate’ to find ‘credible solutions’ to current crisis.
Theresa May has sustained the heaviest parliamentary defeat of any British prime minister in the democratic era after MPs rejected her Brexit deal by a resounding majority of 230.
Theresa May has warned that if MPs reject her Brexit deal next week “no one knows what will happen” and that the UK may never leave the EU at all.
Theresa May seeks to bypass EU with Ireland treaty as No 10 labels MPs’ attempt to give parliament control ‘extremely concerning’
20/01/2019
Prime minister launches new plan to win backing for her deal as she prepares to update MPs on way forward
Ireland’s prime minister has turned the tables on Theresa May in Brexit talks, warning that she should in fact be making concessions to the EU if she wants changes to the agreement.
Theresa May's final bid to win Commons vote already looks doomed as Tory rebels and DUP vow to oppose it
15/05/2019
Theresa May is facing near-certain defeat in her final Brexit gamble, as both Tory rebels and the Democratic Unionist Party vowed to vote down crucial legislation.
Theresa May’s Brexit deal dead as DUP says it will not back agreement ‘under any circumstances’
28/03/2019
The Democratic Unionist Party has hammered the final nail into the coffin of Theresa May’s deal, insisting it will not back it under “any set of circumstances”.
The former head of MI6 has warned Theresa May’s Brexit deal will “threaten the national security of the country”, in a call for Tory MPs to reject it. The agreement would “place control of aspects of our national security in foreign hands”, claims Sir Richard Dearlove, in an extraordinary letter to Conservative associations.
There’s no sensible Brexit option that will get through parliament—it’s time to revoke Article 50 and reconsider
11/03/2019
Contradiction was baked into the Brexit result from the start. Now, its contradictions have proved irreconcilable.
Your comprehensive guide on who wants to do what, and how.
Attorney general faces fury of Bar Council as revolt over internal market bill spreads.
The U.K.’s most senior Anglican bishops have warned that legislation breaching part of the Brexit divorce agreement the government signed with the European Union will set a “disastrous precedent” and could undermine peace in Northern Ireland.
The European Research Group says the Northern Ireland protocol "has to go" but Labour insists: "This was the deal they demanded".
Eurosceptic backbenchers disavowed a key part of Boris Johnson's Brexit deal - which they backed - aimed at preventing a hard border on the island of Ireland.
JAMES BALL examines the areas where Britain is now feeling the painful consequences of its departure from the EU.
Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Coveney has said "trust has been damaged and eroded" between the EU and the UK due to the "hugely irresponsible" actions of the British government in signalling its intent to override elements of the Brexit Withdrawal Agreement.
European Council President Donald Tusk has said that a letter sent to him by British Prime Minister Boris Johnson included no "realistic alternatives" to the backstop.
Irish Minister for Foreign Affairs Simon Coveney has said the UK government is behaving in an "extraordinary way" over Brexit.
Government now rejecting EU oversight of implementing Northern Ireland agreement.
Britain has asked for more time to respond to legal action taken by the European Union over its unilateral decision to ease requirements of the Northern Ireland Protocol, Ireland’s RTE television reported on Wednesday.
The British government is breaching the withdrawal agreement with the European Union by requiring EU citizens to reapply for the right to live and work in the United Kingdom, an independent body set up to oversee citizens’ rights told a London court today.
The British government is breaching the withdrawal agreement with the European Union by requiring EU citizens to reapply for the right to live and work in the United Kingdom, an independent body set up to oversee citizens’ rights told a London court on Tuesday.
The news comes as over 140,000 people register their desire to retain EU citizenship on a specially designed website.
Taoiseach Micheál Martin has warned that the UK’s decision to extend post-Brexit grace periods “exacerbates uncertainty and instability”.
Special trade arrangements will apply from 1 January whether Johnson strikes deal or not.
Theresa May will not get her Brexit deal through the Commons, Donald Tusk has warned, leaving the UK with the option of “a chaotic Brexit” or an extension of its membership of the EU beyond 29 March.
UK FOREIGN Secretary Dominic Raab has accused the EU of putting pressure on the Good Friday Agreement with its approach to the ongoing Brexit negotiations.
UK rejected initial request from Brussels during negotiations on post-Brexit Irish border controls.
Environment secretary says talks in “very difficult position” and a critical 24 hours lie ahead.
Simon Coveney says new legislation will break international law and damage relations between UK and EU.
Twenty-five committees and five study groups to cover almost every conceivable area of interest between the EU and UK have still not been established.
Britain is being led to a no-deal Brexit by a political elite “which has great difficulties discerning and telling the truth”, the UK’s former ambassador to the EU has said, in a withering assessment of the Conservative candidates vying to be prime minister.
UK must ‘immediately’ start building new customs posts for Northern Ireland trade checks, EU says
01/05/2020
UK has made little progress on new infrastructure needed for checks Boris Johnson signed up to.
Sinn Fein President Mary Lou McDonald said suspending the Northern Ireland Protocol could endanger the entire withdrawal agreement.
Government to enrage Brussels by overwriting Brexit withdrawal agreement
UK refuses to scrap plan for treaty breach
11/09/2020
The European Union has told Britain it should urgently scrap a plan to break their divorce treaty, but Prime Minister Boris Johnson's government refused and pressed ahead with a draft law that could sink four years of Brexit talks.
Concerns raised after reports negotiating team told to devise plans to ‘get around’ protocol in withdrawal agreement.
New border checks in Kent and elsewhere reverse 47 years of removal of trade barriers.
The UK position 14 months ago is in sharp contrast to the flat rejection of an EU office in Belfast under Boris Johnson's government.
Leo Varadkar says government must submit plans in writing before EU summit in October.
A European Union grandee today said the UK could be refused a Brexit extension if Theresa May fails to get agreement in the Commons.
Jonathan Jones resigns after plans emerge to alter legally binding Northern Ireland protocol
Under cover of Brexit - Chris Grey
03/07/2020
The most important Brexit event of the week came and went with relatively little fanfare, yet it marks a significant moment.
Taoiseach wants to keep a guarantee there will be no return to hard borders. / Leo Varadkar has said that removing the border backstop would be as bad for Ireland as a no-deal Brexit.
Video resurfaces of Iain Duncan Smith trying to stop MPs scrutinising Brexit agreement he now wants rewritten
05/08/2020
Footage has resurfaced of a Tory Brexiteer praising Boris Johnson’s Withdrawal Agreement bill and trying to prevent MPs from scrutinising the document - days after calling for it to be rewritten.
European commission chief responds to claims that No 10 plans to renege on withdrawal agreement
Watch Ed Miliband attack Boris Johnson as he accuses PM of trying to ‘get Brexit undone’ [2 mins]
14/09/2020
Ed Miliband accused Boris Johnson of seeking to "get Brexit undone" during a widely-praised speech against the controversial UK Internal Market Bill.
Leaving without deciding what kind of relationship we want with the EU will simply prolong the agony.
"We have watched the chaos unfold in Cabinet and the turmoil in negotiations with dismay and foreboding. None of us voted for a bad deal or no deal that would wreck our economy. Nor do we accept that either is inevitable. If the Brexit deal is rejected by Parliament, then we, the people of Britain, should have the democratic right to determine our own future."
Politicians have been bickering about Brexit for the past two years, but everything that has happened so far is just figuring out how we leave the EU - we still have to sort out what kind of relationship we have once we have actually left.
The Expert Factor takes a deep dive into how Brexit is working out – and how it might work out in the months and years ahead.
Open Europe's Stephen Booth, David Shiels and Dominic Walsh examine the revised Withdrawal Agreement
The government – led by Boris Johnson – needs to rethink its approach and put the national interest above Brexit ideology
Theresa May returns to parliament today after a last ditch dash to Strasbourg to win fresh concessions on her deal. So will the deadlock finally be broken this week? Daniel Boffey in Brussels and Sonia Sodha in London explain how the process could now pan out.
DUP's Brexit spokesperson Sammy Wilson has said there is no point in his party agreeing to something that is not deliverable.
Withdrawal Agreement: European Commission sends letter of formal notice to the United Kingdom for breach of its obligations
01/10/2020
The European Commission has today sent the United Kingdom a letter of formal notice for breaching its obligations under the Withdrawal Agreement. This marks the beginning of a formal infringement process against the United Kingdom. It has one month to reply to today's letter.
My former Conservative colleagues: ask yourselves what Boris Johnson has achieved, and heed the damning answer
Prominent Brexiteer and Tory MEP Daniel Hannan has said that he believes Brexit will “not happen at all”.
‘Britain does not break treaties’: EU president quotes Thatcher as she tells Boris Johnson he cannot change Brexit deal
16/09/2020
Ursula von der Leyen says EU will ‘never backtrack’ on withdrawal agreement.
"It leaves some of the most vulnerable children in the UK undocumented and facing an insecure future."
‘If the UK moves forward with this Internal Market Bill… there will be no US-UK trade deal – period’ – Democratic Congressman Brendan Boyle [3 mins]
09/11/2020
We spoke to Democratic Congressman Brendan Boyle, who sits on the House Committee on Ways and Means, which is responsible for international trade agreements.
Two government sources suggest the Meaningful Vote “take 3” might happen on Thursday of next week.
Ivan Rogers says plan by ‘dishonest’ government to override Northern Ireland protocol may cause trade war.
Brexit is like “political climate change” and will go on “forever”, Tánaiste Leo Varadkar has told the Fine Gael parliamentary party.
EU citizens rights campaigners The3Million have said that “numerous” EU nationals are being refused Universal Credit because of their settlement status.
‘There will be consequences’: No US trade deal if Boris Johnson reneges on Brexit agreement, Congressman warns
08/09/2020
‘I can’t believe that any side would be acting in such a cavalier way when we're talking about a fragile peace in the North of Ireland’
The European Parliament has voted to ratify the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA), with 660 out of 697 MEPs voting in favour of the deal, but a Brexit expert has said it is only the beginning.
Britain’s former ambassador to the European Union Ivan Rogers has predicted that Britain will leave the post-Brexit transition at the end of this year with no deal, describing Boris Johnson as a Trumpite politician who wants the EU to fail.
‘Veil of secrecy’: Brexit committee says government denying MPs access to key decision-making details
24/06/2020
European Scrutiny Committee writes to Michael Gove demanding transparency on EU/UK Joint Committee.
‘We are not in a souk:’ Luxembourg’s PM gives exasperated response to UK’s Brexit demands
21/03/2019
'We found the best possible deal and we are not in a souk where we are going to bargain for the next five years'
Ashley Fox says organisation will not hesitate to take public bodies to court if they breach Brexit withdrawal agreement.
Dublin will not give up on the Northern Ireland backstop clause in Britain’s EU Withdrawal Agreement, Irish Prime Minister Leo Varadkar has warned.
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