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Trade Partnerships

Commentary

Doing free trade agreements as if policy really matters

    At the World Economic Forum meetings in Davos,  US Secretary to the Treasury Stephen Mnuchin expressed his optimism that a UK-US free trade agreement could be signed by the end of 2020. Noting that the UK was also negotiating with the EU, he said he was a little bit disappointed that US had not been […]

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    Commentary

    A deal, some deal, or no deal? What’s at play in UK-EU trade negotiations

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

      Introduction The UK Government hopes that the General Election to be held on December 12, 2019 will solve the parliamentary impasse over Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s draft EU withdrawal deal, either by finally securing parliamentary ratification for it or by forcing a No Deal outcome.  Opposition parties meanwhile are working together to block Brexit entirely, […]

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      Commentary

      Old wine, newish wineskin? Initial reflections on the revised UK-EU withdrawal agreement and political declaration

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

        The European Commission (EC) and the UK Government reached an agreement,  on 17 October 2019,  on modifications to the Withdrawal Agreement and accompanying Political Declaration they had first concluded in November 2018, but which failed to pass UK parliament.  The modifications are less revisions than they are a form of recalibration on the way various […]

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        Commentary

        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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          Commentary

          What do we mean by an independent trade policy for the UK?

            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,

            An “independent trade policy” is one of the main prizes proponents of Brexit wish to claim. The issue was barely mentioned during the referendum campaign. But both the Withdrawal Agreement and the Political Declaration state it as one of the main objectives for the UK. And opponents of both frequently point to provisions within these […]

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            Commentary

            No, GATT Article XXIV will not save the UK from a no deal Brexit

              Once the preserve of trade policy wonks, GATT Article XXIV has entered mainstream political discourse in the UK. Ever since the Withdrawal Agreement negotiated between the UK and EU was first voted down in parliament, various political figures (Dominic Raab being the latest) have referred to this Article as paving the way  for a “managed […]

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