BRUSSELS – EU chief Ursula von der Leyen warned today that any pot-Brexit trade deal must not undermine the EU single market.
“We will do all in our power to reach an agreement, we're ready to be creative,” she told the European Parliament, warning that Britain must agree to fair trade rules.
“But we are not ready to put into question the integrity of the single market, the main safeguard for European prosperity and wealth,” the president of the European Commission said.
She repeated Brussels' warning that Britain will not enjoy the benefits of EU membership from the outside: “There will be a clear difference between being a full member of the Union, and being just a valued partner.”
Von der Leyen acknowledged the frustration of MEPs that time is running out for them to be able to debate and ratify any trade deal before Britain leaves the single market on January 1.
But she warned that British Prime Minister Boris Johnson's tactics had shown the need for clear rules to be agreed.
London has been resisting signing up to the EU's vision of a post-Brexit “level playing field”, with trade penalties if either side diverges from agreed standards.
Johnson has also introduced a draft law to govern the UK internal market that his own government admits would breach promises made in Britain's EU withdrawal treaty.
This has undermined trust in Brussels, and talks have now blown past several unofficial deadlines, leaving only a narrow window for agreement before the end of the year.
If a deal cannot be signed and ratified by December 31, cross-Channel trade will face a tariff barrier and businesses on both sides -- but especially, experts agree, in Britain -- will suffer. – AFP, November 25, 2020
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