The European Parliament will speak today to give its consent to the agreement that establishes the rules for future relations between the EU and the UK.
MEPs will also discuss and vote on a resolution evaluating the agreement, in which they insist on its full implementation along with the Withdrawal Agreement, and underline the role that Parliament will have in monitoring the concrete implementation of the agreements.
On 24 December 2020, EU and UK negotiators agreed on the trade and cooperation agreement setting out the terms of future cooperation between Brussels and London on free trade, without quotas and tariffs in sectors such as fisheries, energy and internal security; and fair competition rules. The agreement was provisionally applied from January 1, 2021 and will expire on April 30, 2021.
Parliament's approval is required for the text to come into effect permanently.
In the draft resolution accompanying the vote, drafted by the UK coordination group and the Conference of Presidents, Brexit is referred to as a "historic mistake". The trade and cooperation agreement is also welcomed, but the UK's recent unilateral actions in violation of the Withdrawal Agreement are condemned and the agreed terms are requested to be fully respected and enforced.
The results of the votes will be announced tomorrow morning at 9.00. With the consent of the Parliament, the agreement will enter into force after the vote of the Council.
France is threatening 'retaliatory measures' against the UK if the fisheries agreement, under the post-Brexit agreements, is not implemented
. "We demand the whole deal, nothing more than the deal, and if it is not implemented ... we will take retaliatory measures in other areas if necessary," European Affairs Minister Clement Beaune told broadcaster Bfm Business.
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