Trade Knowledge Exchange > Articles by: Michael Johnson

Michael Johnson

Michael Johnson was a senior official of the UK’s former Department of Trade and Industry, where he worked on international commodity policy, UK bilateral commercial relations with developed country markets, and the UK’s input to EU external trade policy. He is in demand as an independent consultant, and has advised governments of more than twenty developing or former Communist countries on trade policy formulation and on trade-related development projects.

Michael Johnson

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Ireland: Caught in the Toils Of Brexit

    In our post entitled Brexit and the Irish border issue dated 9 February 2018, we wrote: The Issue of Brexit and the Irish border – how to avoid creating some form of border within the island of Ireland – has emerged as one of the most difficult in the entire Brexit negotiation. Three and a […]

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    Reflections on the UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement

      Agreement at last After more than four years of seemingly interminable negotiation following the United Kingdom’s 2016 referendum decision to leave the European Union, the parties finally concluded a Trade and Cooperation Agreement (TCA) at the very last practicable moment, on Christmas Eve 2020.  Ratification was rushed through both Houses of the UK Parliament on […]

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      Brexit: Be careful what you wish for

        The EU flag and the UK flag. Post-Brexit Trade.

        Brexit: Be careful what you wish for   There now seems every likelihood that the United Kingdom and the European Union will fail to reach a formal and definitive agreement on future trade and economic relations to take effect from 1 January 2021.  Thus at the end of the agreed “transition period” on December 31, […]

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        The UK’s three way stretch: Covid-19, Europe and America

        Trade knowledge, trade knowedge exchange, trade compliance, trade tools, barriers to international trade, effects of tariffs, brexit trade, brexit trade deals, post brexit trade deals, post-brexit trade deals, brexit trade, brexit trade deals, trade after brexit, brexit trade agreements, brexit analysis, trade analysis,

        With 30 June looming as the final deadline for any extension of the post-Brexit transition and negotiating period, the United Kingdom Government faces three massive tasks which are inextricably bound together. Each of which would on its own be an overriding priority for any government. These are: combating the SARS-CoV-2 virus (commonly referred to as […]

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        EU-UK: The Chips Are Down

          International trade in goods, Trade services, Professional services brexit, brexit professional services, brexit network, trade expertise, trade expertise network, Trade knowledge, trade knowedge exchange, trade compliance, trade tools, barriers to international trade, effects of tariffs, brexit trade, brexit trade deals, post brexit trade deals, post-brexit trade deals, brexit trade, brexit trade deals, trade after brexit, brexit trade agreements, brexit analysis, trade analysis,

          Introduction – a dialogue of opposites During the last week of February the European Union Council of Ministers formally endorsed the draft mandate which the European Commission had submitted, setting out objectives for a new long-term relationship with the United Kingdom.  A few days later the UK Government published a White Paper specifying its own […]

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          The elusive notion of “a level playing field”

            International trade in goods, Trade services, Professional services brexit, brexit professional services, brexit network, trade expertise, trade expertise network, Trade knowledge, trade knowedge exchange, trade compliance, trade tools, barriers to international trade, effects of tariffs, brexit trade, brexit trade deals, post brexit trade deals, post-brexit trade deals, brexit trade, brexit trade deals, trade after brexit, brexit trade agreements, brexit analysis, trade analysis,

            “Level playing-field” has become one of the most commonly used phrases in international trade. It has been used for example, between the United States and China in their current series of trade disputes.   It crops up regularly between the United Kingdom and the European Union in the context of negotiating a long-term economic and trade […]

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            Trade facts the UK Government has to face

              International trade in goods, Trade services, Professional services brexit, brexit professional services, brexit network, trade expertise, trade expertise network, Trade knowledge, trade knowedge exchange, trade compliance, trade tools, barriers to international trade, effects of tariffs, brexit trade, brexit trade deals, post brexit trade deals, post-brexit trade deals, brexit trade, brexit trade deals, trade after brexit, brexit trade agreements, brexit analysis, trade analysis,

              A central plank of the UK Government’s Brexit policy is to re-establish an “independent” UK international trade policy following more than forty years of integration into the Common Commercial Policy (CCP) of the European Union.  This would have been hard enough technically, even without the ill-tempered stand-off into which the Brexit negotiations have now declined.  […]

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              MORE TIME FOR BREXIT

                International trade in goods, Trade services, Professional services brexit, brexit professional services, brexit network, trade expertise, trade expertise network, Trade knowledge, trade knowedge exchange, trade compliance, trade tools, barriers to international trade, effects of tariffs, brexit trade, brexit trade deals, post brexit trade deals, post-brexit trade deals, brexit trade, brexit trade deals, trade after brexit, brexit trade agreements, brexit analysis, trade analysis,

                The UK and the EU-27 have agreed on an extension to Brexit, with the new deadline for the UK’s withdrawal moved back to 31 October 2019. The UK may leave the EU earlier if parliament passes the Withdrawal Agreement agreed by the Government and the EU. The Government and the Opposition have engaged in talks […]

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