Deutsche Bank has 98,000 staff around the world, including 7,000 in the United Kingdom and 30,000 in Germany. (File Photo)

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Source: https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/2018/03/15/front-bench-britain-has-made-move-against-russia-now-awaits/

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Brussels will have the power to punish the UK at will during the Brexit transition period by closing off parts of the single market to British companies, according to a leaked legal document drawn up by the EU.

The 27 remaining member states want to be able to act against the UK without having to go through the potentially lengthy process of bringing cases to the European court of Justice, should Brussels come to the judgment that Britain has infringed EU law.

The use of focused sanctions to “suspend certain benefits … of the internal market”, would give the EU the freedom to punish the UK without prematurely terminating the transition period and risking damage to its economic interests.

Sanctions the EU could feasibly impose include tariffs on goods, the enforcement of customs checks or the suspension of the single air aviation agreement, which gives UK carriers the right to fly between Britain and the continent.

The document does not stipulate what acts by the UK would lead to sanctions, but the EU has made it clear it is concerned that the British government could infringe the rights of its nationals living in the UK after Brexit.

The development will inevitably fuel the concerns held by some over the terms of the 21-month transition period following Brexit day on 29 March 2019, during which the UK will effectively stay in the single market and customs union without any say on new regulations.

Theresa May’s apparent acceptance of most of the EU’s demands has already prompted accusations from the Tory MP Jacob Rees-Mogg that the UK will be a “vassal state”.

The EU’s leaked position paper, entitled Transitional Arrangements in the Withdrawal Agreement, lays out in legal language the EU’s terms for the transition period, including its insistence that British officials and politicians will play no role in decision-making institutions after 29 March 2019.

The document says that only in exceptional cases will the UK be allowed to sit in on parts of meetings.

Even then, British officials will have to leave the room once the relevant part of discussions have come to an end. “The chair of the meeting concerned shall clearly identify the agenda points for which their attendance is allowed,” the document notes. The UK will also be blocked from having access to “sensitive information”.

The document states that the UK will merely be “consulted” on fishing in its waters during the transition period, in a clear indication of the EU’s intention that the current quotas will remain in force.

The demand for a “mechanism” to punish the UK where it is thought to have infringed EU law during the transition period is likely to cause the most consternation among Brexiters.

The demand is contained in the final footnote in the document, which is to form the centrepiece of this week’s EU-UK negotiations in Brussels.

It states the future withdrawal agreement “should provide for a mechanism allowing the union to suspend certain benefits deriving for the United Kingdom from participation in the internal market where it considers that referring the matter to the court of justice of the European Union would not bring in appropriate time the necessary remedies”.

The two most contentious issues, until now, were thought to be the UK’s lack of a veto in the application of sensitive new laws and May’s insistence that EU nationals arriving in the UK during the transition period will be treated differently to those who are already in the country.

Officials from the UK and the EU will engage in four days of talks, beginning on Tuesday, led by the most senior officials from each side, Sabine Weyand, the bloc’s deputy chief negotiator, and Downing Street’s senior Brexit adviser, Olly Robbins.

A UK government spokesperson said: “This is a draft document produced by the EU that simply reflects their stated directives. The secretary of state set out the UK’s position in his speech in Teesside last month.

“Together these provide a solid foundation for the negotiations on the implementation period which have begun this week with the aim of reaching agreement by March’s European council meeting.”

Source: https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2018/feb/06/brexit-eu-power-punish-uk-transition-period-sanctions

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The post ‘Norway plus?’ Irish PM breaks ranks with Brussels to propose Brexit trade solution first appeared on Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association.

“I think it will be a specific agreement for the United Kingdom. Of course as Ireland we want that to be as close as possible – we would have it ‘Norway-plus’ but I think we have to get into the detail now of what that means,” Leo Varadkar told Bloomberg Television in an interview in Davos, Switzerland.

Norway is part of the European Union’s single market, but not the customs union.

The EU’s chief Brexit negotiation Michel Barnier in December said the future free trade agreement between the European Union and Britain would have to be along the same lines as the one the EU has with Canada.

But Varadkar said that neither the Norwegian model nor the Canadian model would fit the United Kingdom.

“It’s difficult to compare it to Norway, which is a relatively small country… or a country like Canada, which is on a different continent,” he said.

While Britain has repeatedly said it will not remain in the EU customs union or single market, “perhaps we can negotiate something that isn’t very different to that,” Varadkar said.

Such a deal would, however, require the United Kingdom to realise that it cannot cherry pick benefits of EU membership without the corresponding responsibilities.

Access to European markets for London-based financial services firms would depend on what the UK might give in return, he said.

The post Irish PM says wants ‘Norway-plus’ Brexit deal with UK first appeared on Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association.

Theresa May has refused to say she would back Brexit if the referendum on quitting the European Union was held now.

In a move likely to anger Tory Brexiteers, the Prime Minister, who backed Remain, repeatedly sidestepped questions over which camp she would be in.

During an appearance on LBC, Mrs May insisted she was being “open and honest” when she could not give an answer.

Asked if she had changed her mind about how to vote, she replied: “I don’t answer hypothetical questions.

“I voted Remain for good reasons at the time but circumstances move on.”

Mrs May was told Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt had switched from Remain to Leave because former Chancellor George Osborne’s gloomy economic predictions had failed to materialise.

Presenter Iain Dale said: “If he says he can change his mind I don’t quite understand why you can’t seeing as you are Prime Minister leading us into Brexit.”

“Yes and I’m Prime Minister ensuring I’m going to deliver Brexit for the British people,” she replied.

Pressed again, Mrs May said: “I could say I would still vote Remain or I would vote Leave just to give you an answer to that question.

“I am being open and honest with you. What I did last time round was I looked at everything and I came to a judgment and I would do exactly the same this time round.

“But we are not having another referendum and that’s absolutely crucial.”

Exactly – the people should have the right to ‘weigh up the evidence’ when she has a deal on the table! https://t.co/feVk3VeC2f

— Lib Dem Press Office (@LibDemPress) October 10, 2017

Liberal Democrat deputy leader Jo Swinson said: “It is staggering that even the Prime Minister isn’t convinced by the Government’s approach to Brexit.

“If Theresa May doesn’t have any faith in her own Government’s policies, why is she still driving this country towards the cliff edge?

“Theresa May says she would weigh up the evidence again, she shouldn’t deny that right to the British people.

“The public must have the chance to change their mind if they want to, once the Government comes back with a deal.”

Mrs May’s de facto deputy Damian Green suggested he would stick to his Remain vote from last year’s referendum but described the question put to the PM and him as “meaningless”.

The First Secretary of State told Channel 4 News: “Well, I was on the board of the Stronger In campaign so my views on Europe are well known and I don’t resile from anything I said during the election campaign.

“Of course, the fact is it’s a meaningless question because there’s not going to be a referendum tomorrow, so it’s a purely hypothetical question.”

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Source: https://www.aol.co.uk/news/2017/10/10/theresa-may-refuses-to-say-she-would-back-brexit-if-there-was-an/

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