Brexit timeline: EU sets out goals for 2020 timeline - and it’s not what you’d expect
BRITAIN and the European Union will soon head into an intensive period of negotiations which will determine the future relationship on trade and beyond. This week, the EU set out the timeline for the year.
Brexit: EU to offer ’ambitious trade deal’ says Michel Barnier
In a press conference on Monday, EU chief negotiator Michel Barnier set out a timeline for the Brexit transition period, due to run until the end of 2020. While the EU has repeatedly warned the timeframe is too short to agree a robust deal, the timeline laid out shows the EU has its own priorities, too.
As things stand, the transition period will expire on December 31, 2020, with the UK heading into 2021 as a completely autonomous state.
The EU has repeatedly warned the UK this time frame doesn’t provide long enough to reach a comprehensive deal.
For example, the Canada free trade agreement, with Prime Minister Boris Johnson hopes to use as a model to base negotiations, took eight years to negotiate and still isn’t fully ratified.
Mr Johnson, however, insisted the UK will not extend beyond the end of 2020.
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Currently, the UK has until the end of June to decide if it wants to extend the period, a date reflected in Mr Barnier’s timeline.
Mr Barnier said the timing is “Johnson’s choice”.
However, there is another interesting date reflected in Mr Barnier’s timeline for the year, which shows the EU has its own timing issue.
The timeline, which you can see in full in the chart above, shows the EU aims to wrap up negotiations by the October European Council summit, currently set for October 15 and 16.
That would then allow two and half months to ratify the future agreement before the transition period expires.
While this might sound feasible, it is very unlikely to run quite so smoothly.
First, there is the potential for having to involve national parliaments.
If not all parts of the deal agreed are exclusive to the EU as a whole, member states could demand their national parliaments must have a say.
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Any rejection from a member state - even one - could scupper the whole deal.
Then there’s the second factor, which is even more likely: that the EU and UK cannot come to an agreement by October.
Already major cracks are showing, with Mr Barnier and Mr Johnson striking vastly different tones in speeches occurring at almost the same time on Monday.
Both sides showed contrasting goals for the talks, with Mr Johnson threatening to walk away with no deal rather than signing up to EU rules.
Read more here about the five major differences in Mr Johnson and Mr Barnier’s speeches.
After the speeches, Mr Barnier reminded Mr Johnson he had already agreed in a “very important” declaration to stay true to EU rules on subsidies and standards.
He pointed to the “political declaration” agreed last year with Mr Johnson, while admitting that alignment was a “red rag” to Westminster.
He said: “There can’t be possibly any surprise on the British side to hear that, if we are acting in good faith here.
“I say that because in the text of the political declaration... there are some very clear words there.
“A full chapter that talks about the description of the level playing field and the objective of having fair and open competition.”