After May’s Deal Defeated, Brexit at Impasse

David DowningJanuary 16, 2019July 31, 2020

The Houses of Parliament in London, England at dawn, April 14, 2011 (Chris Goldberg)

Last night, Prime Minister Theresa May’s Brexit deal was voted down by the British parliament in an historic defeat.

This came even after she delayed the vote, which was meant to take place in December, to try to shore up support for the agreement.

The three largest opposition parties — Labour, the Scottish nationalists and the Liberal Democrats — voted against the deal. So did the junior governing party, the Democratic Unionist Party of Northern Ireland (DUP), along with 118 of May’s own Conservatives.

In all, the treaty, which is meant to regulate Britain’s withdrawal from the EU, was rejected by 432 to 202 votes. Read more “After May’s Deal Defeated, Brexit at Impasse”

Northern Irish, Scots Would Rather Stay in EU Than UK

Nick OttensDecember 16, 2018July 31, 2020

Flags of the United Kingdom and Scotland in Sumburgh on the Shetland Islands, July 3, 2014 (Julien Carnot)

Without an agreement to regulate Britain’s withdrawal from the EU, a majority of Northern Irish and Scots would rather remain in the bloc than in the United Kingdom.

Even with the deal Prime Minister Theresa May has negotiated, which provides for a two-year transition out of the EU and avoids a hard border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, a majority of Scots would prefer to break away from the UK. Read more “Northern Irish, Scots Would Rather Stay in EU Than UK”

A Futile Leadership Challenge from Brexiteers in Denial

Nick OttensDecember 12, 2018July 31, 2020

British prime minister Theresa May speaks with the American defense secretary James Mattis at Lancaster House in London, England, May 11, 2017 (DoD/Jette Carr)

With Brexit only four months away, its biggest supporters are still in denial about what it must mean.

They have called a confidence vote in Theresa May, believing that a different prime minister could negotiate a better deal from the EU.

They’re wrong. Read more “A Futile Leadership Challenge from Brexiteers in Denial”

May Delays Brexit Vote. European Court Rules Britain Can Cancel Article 50

Nick OttensDecember 10, 2018July 31, 2020

View of the Houses of Parliament in London, England, December 21, 2011 (Ben Sutherland)

British prime minister Theresa May has delayed a parliamentary vote on Brexit on the day the European Court of Justice ruled the country can unilaterally cancel its withdrawal from the EU. Read more “May Delays Brexit Vote. European Court Rules Britain Can Cancel Article 50”

EFTA Is Not an Alternative to Theresa May’s Brexit Deal

Nick OttensNovember 26, 2018July 31, 2020

The Sun reports that British cabinet secretaries Michael Gove and Amber Rudd — the former a leader of the 2016 campaign to leave the EU, the latter a “remainer” — intend to push for membership of the European Free Trade Association (EFTA) with Labour’s support if and when Prime Minister Theresa May’s Brexit deal fails in Parliament.

This plan is unlikely to succeed, for two reasons:

It confuses the withdrawal agreement with the political declaration on the future EU-UK relationship.
Neither the EU nor the EFTA would accept it as a short-term solution. Read more “EFTA Is Not an Alternative to Theresa May’s Brexit Deal”

Why Spain’s Threat to Hold Up Brexit Over Gibraltar Is Theater

Nick OttensNovember 20, 2018September 22, 2020

Spanish foreign minister Josep Borrell attends a meeting in Brussels, July 17 (European Council)

Spain has demanded greater clarity on the status of Gibraltar before signing off on the treaty that is meant to regulate Britain’s exit from the EU in March 2019.

“We want the interpretation to be clear in that text that the negotiations between the United Kingdom and the EU will not apply to Gibraltar,” Josep Borrell, the Spanish foreign minister, said on Monday.

Here is why his demand is a bit of a dud. Read more “Why Spain’s Threat to Hold Up Brexit Over Gibraltar Is Theater”

May’s Brexit Deal Splits Conservative Party

Atlantic SentinelNovember 15, 2018July 31, 2020

British prime minister Theresa May attends a NATO summit in Brussels, July 11, 2018 (Shutterstock/Alexandros Michailidis)

Seven members of the British government, including Brexit Secretary Dominic Raab, have resigned in protest to Theresa May’s Brexit deal.
They — and many Conservatives — object to a potentially indefinite “backstop” in the withdrawal agreement that would keep the United Kingdom in a customs union with the EU in order to avoid closing the border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. Read more “May’s Brexit Deal Splits Conservative Party”

Everything You Need to Know About the Brexit Deal

Nick OttensNovember 14, 2018July 31, 2020

Flags of the United Kingdom and the European Union outside the Berlaymont building in Brussels, January 29, 2016 (European Commission)

The United Kingdom has reached a provisional agreement with the EU about its withdrawal from the bloc in March 2019.

Here is a summary of what you need to know. Read more “Everything You Need to Know About the Brexit Deal”

May’s Is the Only Alternative to a No-Deal Brexit

Nick OttensNovember 14, 2018July 31, 2020

British prime minister Theresa May attends the G20 summit in Hamburg, Germany, July 8, 2017 (The Prime Minister’s Office/Jay Allen)

After Britain voted to leave the EU in 2016, I argued here that the only alternative to a “hard” Brexit was a Norway-style deal under which Britain would stay in the EU customs union and single market.

I got it half-right. The draft agreement that is due to be published later today would — according to British media — see the United Kingdom exit the single market but remain in the customs union until a better solution can be found to prevent the return of a border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.

Britain would also respect the rights of the roughly three million EU nationals in the country. The one million Britons who live and work on the continent would be treated similarly. Read more “May’s Is the Only Alternative to a No-Deal Brexit”

May Wins Cabinet Support for Brexit Treaty

Atlantic SentinelNovember 14, 2018July 31, 2020

British prime minister Theresa May speaks with ministers at her Chequers country retreat in Buckinghamshire, England, February 22 (MoD)

British prime minister Theresa May has won her cabinet’s support for a withdrawal agreement with the EU.
The challenge now is getting the treaty approved by her ruling Conservative Party and its allies in Northern Ireland. Read more “May Wins Cabinet Support for Brexit Treaty”