WGPlus (Archive)
| A Brexit plan that Parliament can debate without giving away UK ‘negotiating secrets’! |
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A new Civitas study demonstrates how UK exporters could be compensated if Britain leaves the EU without having agreed a free trade deal with its remaining members. An £8.8bn package of support, built around R&D credits, support for disadvantaged regions and reducing electricity costs would be WTO-compliant and offset tariff costs. Such a scheme would form the bedrock of a post-Brexit industrial strategy and be funded entirely from tariffs levied on EU exports into Britain, estimated to be almost £13bn. The analysis should give British negotiators confidence that they can walk away if the right EU trade deal is not forthcoming from the 27 remaining members. Hence, the real question is not “how soft a Brexit can we achieve?” but rather “how hard a negotiation do we wish to drive with the EU?” ‘The balance of negotiating strengths is far more favourable to the UK. If the EU-27 wish to impose a self-inflicted wound by levying tariffs on British exports, Britain has little to fear. |
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Civitas: British business need have little to fear from EU tariff barriers PC&PE: Brexit: fisheries report debated by Lords Telegraph: EU members face paying 'Brexit tax’ to fund shortfall Open Europe: How the UK’s financial services sector can continue thriving after Brexit Civitas: EU economies have more to lose than the UK from curbs on trade Civitas: The £13bn cost to EU exporters of failing to agree free trade terms with post-Brexit UK Like removing a plaster; it hurts less if you do it quickly A ‘counter-balance’ to recent HM Treasury ‘Project Fear rants’ |
