BUSINESS NEWS
Boris Johnson: ‘I see no reason why we should extend the [Brexit] transition [period]’
Election just a prelude to more Brexit uncertainty
Next week’s vote ‘critical’ to Brexit, but no immediate end in sight. By Ian Taylor
Te general election will be “critical for the outcome of Brexit”, a senior analyst has told industry investors, amid fears a Boris Johnson government could run out of time to negotiate a trade agreement and Britain still leave the EU with no deal. The UK is due to leave on
January 31, but MPs’ ratification of Johnson’s withdrawal agreement depends on the outcome on December 12. A week ahead of the poll, the
most likely result appeared to be a Conservative majority or a hung Parliament. Yet neither outcome would end the uncertainty because
72 5 DECEMBER 2019
the government would still have to negotiate an EU trade deal by next December. The analyst – who spoke on
condition of anonymity – said: “Businesses thought the Brexit date was the critical event. [But] it’s just the beginning. The UK will be treated as if still a member state for the transition period to December 2020 unless by mutual agreement the period is extended for one or two years.” Yet Johnson has ruled out extending
the transition, insisting last month: “I see no reason why we should extend the transition. We start negotiations in perfect alignment so the negotiations
should be extremely simple.” This may have been intended to
persuade the Brexit Party not to stand candidates in Conservative-held seats. However, the Conservative manifesto confirmed: “We will not extend the implementation period beyond December 2020.” Johnson also confirmed Britain would diverge from EU regulations, announcing last week that he would change state-aid rules. The analyst told investors: “The
UK and EU have signalled they would like regulatory alignment on goods,
Continued on page 70
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