Briefing Paper 3 – ROOS AND RULES: WHY THE EEA IS NOT THE SAME AS MEMBERSHIP OF THE SINGLE MARKET
This briefing paper summarises two issues that a post-Brexit United Kingdom would face if it re-joined the European Economic Area (EEA). It introduces the concept of the EEA+EU as a ‘regulatory union’ within which products, once approved in one country, can circulate freely. Secondly, Rules of Origin (RoOs) — which in effect specify the domestic share of value-added — would need to be adhered to, raising concerns about the viability of supply chains with UK links.
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Brexit: the lawyer’s first 100 days
30 September 2016
Erika Szyszczak is Professor of Law in the School of Law, Politics and Sociology at the University of Sussex, and a member of UKTPO.
The “first 100 days” has become a standard by which to evaluate important political times. Undoubtedly, the momentous decision on 23 June 2016 to break up the current geopolitical space of Europe will be examined by historians as a decisive period of modern European history.
From a lawyer’s perspective the most striking feature of the last 100 days has been the legal uncertainty of how to implement the referendum result. This represents the challenge we love. So this blog examines some of these uncertainties. […]
UK-Australia trade deal useful as a warm-up for tougher negotiations
12 September 2016
Michael Gasiorek is a Senior Lecturer in Economics, in the School of Business, Management and Economics and a member of UKTPO. He is also Managing Director of InterAnalysis, a University spin-out company focusing on trade policy.
There has been talk in the past week about a future free trade agreement (FTA) between the UK and Australia – and indeed Australia expressed interest in such an FTA soon after the Brexit referendum. For the UK government this seems to be an affirmation of the future possibilities for the UK, as and when it assumes full responsibility for trade policy post Brexit. In reality, our trade with Australia is relatively small and so the real value may be in the opportunity for the UK’s fledgling trade negotiators to get round the table with friendly faces and hammer out a low-stakes trade deal. […]
What does an inclusive UK trade policy look like?
5 September 2016
In the face of severe and competing pressures, a UK trade policy that ‘works for everyone’ – to use Prime Minister Theresa May’s phrase – is going to be immensely difficult to achieve, writes Steve McGuire.
The legal and political obstacles to the UK’s construction of an independent international trade policy have been well documented. The legal complexities are eye-watering; as my UKTPO colleague Emily Lydgate points out, the relationship between Article 50 and UK trade policy is unclear. Nor does the UK government have enough expertise in the negotiation and implementation of trade rules. […]
Briefing Paper 2 – THE UK TRADE LANDSCAPE AFTER BREXIT
This paper discusses the challenges for the UK as it attempts to redefine and renegotiate its post-Brexit foreign trading relationships. This briefing makes the assumption that the UK will not, after leaving the EU, remain part of the customs union. On this basis, the paper examines the nature of such trade negotiations; the scale of the negotiating tasks confronting the UK; and potential approaches that may reduce the immediate negotiating load. It also identifies the countries that should be prioritized for trading negotiations, and examines the likely resources that will be required to undertake these.
Delaying EU-UK trade negotiations would cost billions – in the best-case scenario
22 August 2016
Dr Emily Lydgate is a Lecturer in Law in the School of Law, Politics and Sociology at the University of Sussex, and is a member of UKTPO
According to government sources at the weekend, the UK probably won’t trigger Article 50 until late 2017. At this point, it is crucial the EU and UK begin negotiating their new trade agreement. Delaying until after Brexit and relying on WTO rules in the meantime would cost the UK billions – in the best case scenario.
The worst case would see trade conflicts erupting and negotiations with the rest of the world in indefinite limbo. […]
Heaven or hell? Brexit legal issues analysed through ‘Hotel California’ lyrics
11 August 2016
Erika Szyszczak is Professor of Law in the School of Law, Politics and Sociology at the University of Sussex, and a member of UKTPO.
This post sets out some of the legal issues arising after the referendum of 23 June 2016, taking a generous liberty with the interpretation of the lyrics of The Eagles’ song “Hotel California”.
Leaving the EU Customs Union: What is the issue?
29 July 2016
Professor L. Alan Winters, Professor Jim Rollo and Dr Peter Holmes are all members of UKTPO
Liam Fox MP, the President of the Board of Trade, is reported as saying that the UK should leave the EU Customs Union so as to give it the freedom to negotiate Free Trade Areas (FTAs) with other countries.
This would be an unexceptionable step after full Brexit but a provocative, and very probably costly, one before Brexit. […]
Briefing Paper 1 – THE WORLD TRADE ORGANISATION: A SAFETY NET FOR A POST-BREXIT UK TRADE POLICY?
By electing to leave the European Union, the United Kingdom has chosen – among many other things – to leave the customs union (and the single market that includes all member states) and reassert its status as an individual member of the World Trade Organisation (WTO). In doing so, it will take sole responsibility for the control and governance of its external trade policy with all other WTO members (including the EU) within the framework of WTO rules. This paper explores the nature of those WTO commitments and how they might impact the UK from the date of its exit from the EU.
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