Prime Minister Boris Johnson and President of the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, will meet for dinner as they will try to reach a breakthrough in a post-Brexit trade deal on December 9, 2020 in Brussels, Belgium.
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LONDON – Britain and the European Union agreed on new Brexit trade arrangements on Thursday more than four years after the UK voted to leave the bloc, narrowly avoiding a potentially disastrous no-deal scenario.
Ursula von der Leyen, President of the European Commission, said it was a “good deal”.
“It has been a long and winding road, but we have a lot to show for it,” she said at a press conference. “It’s fair, it’s a balanced deal and it’s the right and responsible thing for both parties.”
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson will hold a press conference shortly.
The UK was no longer a full member of the European Union in January, following the Brexit vote on June 23, 2016. However, it agreed to continue to follow European rules until the end of 2020, so that it could negotiate more friendly trading conditions with the EU. other 27 countries.
The two sides have been engaged in intense talks since March to determine how trade will work from January. There were significant clashes over fishing, competition rules and the management of their new relationship.
The trade deal is due to be ratified by the UK and EU parliaments in the coming weeks, but it is a welcome development for companies on both sides of the English Channel.
The deal will almost certainly mean lower tariffs and costs for exporters than they would have experienced had the UK left the EU without an agreement.
It ends more than four years of what at times seemed like endless economic uncertainty, and it marks the first time that a member of the EU has formally withdrawn from the political bloc.
This is a breaking news story and will be updated soon.