IEA reacts to Government's draft Withdrawal Agreement

20 Nov 2018 09:08 AM

The IEA has released a briefing which summarises the key points of the 585-page draft Withdrawal Agreement the Government has put forward.

The briefing makes the case that while the proposed deal would help to minimise some of the disruption that might be caused by the UK’s departure from the EU, it could make it harder to realise the full economic benefits Brexit has to offer.

The controversial aspects of the deal as it stands include: the transition period, the financial settlement and the Irish backstop.

Key Points

Commenting on the briefing, the IEA’s Chief Economist and Head of the IEA’s Brexit Unit Julian Jessop said:

“With this agreement, the UK may is able to negotiate new trade deals during the transition period in principle. But having the theoretical right to do so is meaningless when trading partners will see the UK is in a de facto customs union in perpetuity. This agreement sets out that the UK will remain bound by the rules of the EU, but with less in determining them, and liable to pay an extortionate financial settlement of around £39 billion.”

Notes to editors:

For media enquiries please contact Nerissa Chesterfield, Head of Communications: nchesterfield@iea.org.uk 020 7799 8920 or 07791 390 268

To download the IEA’s Brexit Unit briefing ‘Dissecting the Deal’ please click here.

For more  IEA research on Brexit click here.

The mission of the Institute of Economic Affairs is to improve understanding of the fundamental institutions of a free society by analysing and expounding the role of markets in solving economic and social problems and seeks to provide analysis in order to improve the public understanding of economics.

The IEA is a registered educational charity and independent of all political parties.