“Let me be unequivocal about this. Under my authority, the UK will not seek any relationship with Europe that is based on alignment with EU laws,” pro-Brexit pro Rishi Sunak said. the first hour, at a conference of the CBI, the main employers’ organization of the country, adding that Brexit “already brings important benefits and opportunities for the country”.
The United Kingdom left the European Union in January 2021 after years of an intense political battle to fix the new relationship between the two entities.
On Sunday, the Sunday Times had claimed that “members of the government are planning to put Britain on the path to a relationship similar to that of Switzerland with the European Union”. An initiative that would be “intended to strengthen economic ties” with the EU.
This information caused an outcry among Brexit supporters. “The government must focus on what it needs to do, rather than trying to reopen an already settled debate on Europe,” tackled Conservative MP Iain Duncan Smith in the columns of the Sun.
“Don’t betray us on Brexit”, headlined the popular daily Daily Mail, a great defender of leaving the EU, on Monday.
Trying to calm the revolt, a spokesman for the Conservative government had already denied such a project on Sunday, calling the article “categorically false”.
And on Monday morning, the Secretary of State for Immigration Robert Jenrick assured that the United Kingdom now had “a well-defined position” on its relations with Brussels, with the agreement concluded in 2019.
The United Kingdom has thus left the single market, even if trade continues to be largely free of customs duties, has ended freedom of movement and no longer contributes financially to the EU.
But last week, the words of Finance Minister Jeremy Hunt, who said he wanted to see “the vast majority” of customs barriers between his country and the EU, had already raised questions about the government’s intentions.
Especially since he is currently negotiating fiercely with Brussels a modification of the protocol on Northern Ireland to settle the question of the status of the province, in the midst of a political deadlock.
This sequence “is interesting because it seems to show that Rishi Sunak and Jeremy Hunt (…) admit that the ATT (the trade and cooperation agreement signed between the EU and the United Kingdom) is bad for the economy But the outcry and denial show how difficult it will be for a Conservative government to admit “this,” John Springford, a researcher at the Center for European Reform and anti-Brexit, told AFP.
More and more Britons regret leaving the EU. According to a poll published by the YouGov institute last week, support for Brexit is at an all-time low with 56% of Britons believing it was a mistake.
This controversy comes as the country is going through a major economic and financial crisis. Most economists and business leaders see Brexit as an aggravating factor in the crisis also caused by the war in Ukraine.
The organization responsible for economic forecasts (OBR) notably estimated last week that Brexit had had “a significant negative impact” on the country’s trade.
Since leaving the European Union, the United Kingdom has had to resign trade agreements and has notably concluded some with the EU and several European countries, but also with New Zealand and Australia. Discussions are underway with India, Canada or the United States.
Contrasting with his predecessors in a hurry, Rishi Sunak said last Thursday that the United Kingdom should “take the time” to negotiate good agreements.
British employers criticize the rigidity of the new migration rules, which prevent them from finding the labor that companies need. The executive, which has made the control of migratory flows a Brexit priority, intends to favor the most qualified profiles.
