The UK published on Saturday the trade deal it had reached with the European Union to facilitate breaking the bloc, revealing for the first time details of the agreement that both sides had praised earlier this week.
The 1,246-page trade document covers a range of trade issues, as well as agreements on topics such as nuclear energy and information exchange. In the first place, it means that the UK does not face tariffs or quotas in its trading relationship with its continental neighbors when it leaves the EU.
As part of the deal, the UK will be forced to subscribe to the principles of “a level playing field” to ensure that the EU’s trading partners do not gain an advantage over the continent by receiving state aid or by adopting more lax environmental or labor rules. implement. British goods will also still have to be checked at the border.
The two sides first announced the trade deal earlier this week, calling it a good deal after months of sometimes tense negotiations. The agreement will help prevent a ‘hard’ Brexit before the UK’s formal break in January, which would have led to widespread disruptions across Europe.
The deal was presented to European ministers on Friday and is to be ratified by the European and UK parliaments.
“We have finally found an agreement. It was a long and winding road, but we have a lot to show for it. It’s fair, it’s a balanced agreement, and it’s the right and responsible thing for both parties, ”said European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen at a press conference on Thursday.
The deal allows each party to use an independent grant control arbitrator to resolve any disputes.
The specific provisions include agreements on services, which account for about 80% of the UK economy, and fishing rights, a major problem for coastal cities in the UK and the EU.
The two sides agreed on services to “create a favorable environment for the development of trade and investment between them”, and the UK said it would introduce new rules for EU fisheries in UK waters for 5½ years. After that period, the two sides would negotiate annually what EU vessels could catch in those waters.
The UK will also no longer participate in certain security-sharing groups, but intelligence is still expected to flow between the two sides.
The agreement caps four years of uncertainty since a 2016 UK referendum that resulted in a narrow majority of voters backing the European bloc. The vote sparked a struggle between both sides to find a way to formalize the split, with years of negotiations until recent months proving fruitless.