The 599-page Withdrawal Agreement covers the following key areas:[16] The 2019 revisions also adapted elements of the political declaration, replacing the word “adequate” with “appropriate” with regard to labour standards. According to Sam Lowe, a trade researcher at the Centre for European Reform, the change excludes labour standards from dispute resolution mechanisms. [27] In addition, the level playing field mechanism has been moved from the legally binding Withdrawal Agreement to the Political Declaration[24] and the line in the Political Declaration that “the UK will consider aligning itself with EU legislation in relevant areas” has been deleted. [26] The Withdrawal Agreement between the European Union and the United Kingdom sets out the conditions for an orderly withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the EU in accordance with Article 50 of the Treaty on European Union. With regard to the Irish border issue, there is a protocol on Northern Ireland (the “backstop”) which is annexed to the agreement and sets out a fallback position that will only enter into force if no other effective arrangement is demonstrated before the end of the transition period. If this happens, the UK will eclipse the EU`s common external tariff and Northern Ireland will remain in some aspects of the single market until such a demonstration is achieved. None of the parties can unilaterally withdraw from this customs union. The aim of this backstop agreement is to avoid a “hard” border in Ireland where customs controls are necessary. [19] According to the WAB law, the Withdrawal Agreement must also be ratified by the European Parliament. NEGOTIATORS FROM THE EU and the UK have reached an agreement on the draft Withdrawal Agreement, which will allow the European Council (Article 50) to reach an agreement on 23 March.
March 2018 Adopt guidelines for the framework for the future relationship between the EU and the UK. The reception of the agreement in the House of Commons was from cold to hostile and the vote was delayed by more than a month. Prime Minister May won a no-confidence motion against her own party, but the EU refused to accept further changes. On 13 November 2017, Brexit Secretary David Davis announced his intention to draft a new bill to enshrine the Withdrawal Agreement, if any, in national law through primary law. .