Brexit law in force in Great Britain - Johnson satisfied: "New beginning in our country's history"

It was a long tug of war, then the breakthrough on Christmas Eve: a Brexit agreement.

The Queen has meanwhile agreed.

• Shortly before the end of the transition phase on December 31, it is done: A

  deal

  between Great Britain and the EU.

  (see first report)

• Brexit * means

  a serious turning point

  for young Europeans too

  .

  (see update from December 29th, 2:07 p.m.)

• The British House of Commons has approved the Brexit deal with the EU.

  (see update from December 30th, 3:50 p.m.)

• This

  news ticker

  is continuously updated.

Update from December 31, 6.58 a.m

.: The way for the

Brexit trade pact between Great Britain and the EU

is clear.

Queen Elizabeth II

enacted the ratification law as head of state on Thursday night.

That said the Speaker of the House of Commons, Lindsay Hoyle.

Both houses

of Parliament

in London

had previously

approved the document.

The agreement will avoid a hard economic break if Great Britain also leaves the EU internal market and the customs union on Friday night.

The EU itself had already left the country at the end of January 2020.

"The fate of this great country is now firmly in our hands," said

Prime Minister Boris Johnson

.

“On December 31st at 11pm (local time) a new beginning will begin in the history of our country and a new relationship with the EU as its closest ally.

That moment has finally come, and now is the time to seize it, ”said Johnson.

The trade and partnership agreement is almost 1250 pages long and regulates economic relations after the Brexit transition phase from January 1, 2021.

This avoids tariffs and keeps friction losses in retail as low as possible.

At the same time, many other issues are regulated, including fishing and cooperation on energy, transport, justice, police.

Despite the Brexit trade pact: Big changes are imminent

However, major changes are also imminent.

In the future, controls will be necessary at borders because standards have to be checked, including for agricultural products.

For citizens, the possibility of simply moving is over.

Visa-free travel will also be limited in time in the future.

The EU leaders had

already signed

the

Brexit trade pact this

morning.

After the EU Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen and EU Council President Charles Michel had signed the document, it was flown to London on a plane belonging to the British Air Force.

Prime Minister Johnson signed the agreement there.

British House of Commons approves the Brexit deal with the EU - "best friends and allies"

Update from December 30th, 9:18 pm:

On Wednesday,

Prime Minister

Boris Johnson signed

the

Brexit agreement in

addition to the

EU

.

He described it as the basis for a "wonderful relationship".

There is no longer enough time until the end of the year for a regular ratification process.

Therefore, the agreed rules are to be applied temporarily until at least February 28th.

Update from December 30th, 4:51 p.m.:

The next hurdle is over: The

lower house

- House of Commons - has approved the Brexit deal.

The MPs confirmed the plan with an overwhelming majority.

The law should probably only come into force around midnight, when the House of Lords has voted in favor and Queen Elizabeth has given her formal approval.

It is certain that the law will also find a majority in the second chamber, the House of Lords.

The EU leaders signed the

Brexit trade pact this

morning.

After EU Commission chief

Ursula von der Leyen

and EU Council President

Charles Michel

had signed the document, it was flown to London on a plane belonging to the British Air Force and was to be presented to Prime Minister

Johnson

there.

Our official House of Commons photographer was in the Chamber to take photos of the European Union (Future Relationship) Bill debate.

Find out more about the Bill: https://t.co/dmyDv4e12g

Images: © UK Parliament / Jessica Taylor pic.twitter.com/UJlz7HnpxK

- UK House of Commons (@HouseofCommons) December 30, 2020

Brexit: House of Commons approves deal with EU

"At the core of this bill is one of the largest free trade agreements in the world," said Johnson at the start of the debate in the House of Commons in London.

It will enable companies to intensify trade with the EU, said the head of government.

Opposition leader

Keir Starmer from the Labor Party

, however, described the agreement as "thin" and "flawed".

However, it is better than an EU exit without a deal, which would lead to price increases and bring companies to the edge of existence - that's why his party wanted to vote for the bill.

Former

Prime Minister Theresa May also

welcomed the agreement, but criticized that it only regulates trade in goods and not trade in services, which is important for Great Britain.

The exit agreement she negotiated in spring 2019 provided

for better conditions

, but at that time the opposition voted against it, she complained.

May had failed her deal three times in the House of Commons and then had to resign.

Update from December 30th, 3:50 p.m.:

The British House of Commons has approved the

Brexit trade pact

with the European Union.

The members of the first chamber voted on Wednesday in the second reading with a clear majority for the EU law presented by Prime Minister Boris Johnson.

Later the

House of Lords is

to give the treaty its blessing.

The British Parliament votes on the Brexit deal - "EU's best friend and ally"

Update from December 30, 12.41 p.m.: Prime Minister Boris Johnson

commented on the

Brexit agreement

on Wednesday

.

Great Britain

will become the “best friend and ally of the EU”.

"With this bill we will be a friendly neighbor," Johnson said.

Britain and the European Union would "work hand in hand whenever our values ​​and interests match," said Johnson.

At the same time, however, the government respects the "sovereign desire of the British people to live under their own sovereign laws made by their own sovereign parliament".

The

British House of Commons

is currently

deliberating on the

Brexit trade agreement.

The consent is considered to be secured.

Update from December 30th, 10.15 a.m.: EU Commission chief Ursula von der Leyen

and Council President

Charles Michel

signed the

post-Brexit trade agreement

on Wednesday in a short ceremony.

Brexit agreement: British parliament in urgent proceedings - The Queen signs the deal into force

Update from December 30th, 6.53 a.m.:

The British Parliament votes in a hurry on Wednesday on the

Brexit trade

package

.

The consent is considered certain.

In the evening,

Queen Elizabeth II,

as head of state,

is supposed to put

the law into force with her signature.

Excerpts published in advance from

Prime Minister Boris Johnson's

speech to Parliament make it clear that he

wants to present

the

Brexit deal

as a historic opportunity: the purpose is to “achieve something that the British people in their hearts always knew were done can be, ”said Johnson.

This goes back to information from the German Press Agency.

Boris Johnson

also wanted

to underline the close friendship with Europe in his speech: "What we were looking for was not a break, but a solution - a solution to the old and annoying question of

British

political relations

with Europe, which burdened our post-war history", is in advance read published manuscript.

The end of the discussion in the

House of Commons

on the law is expected around 3:30 p.m.

The

House of Lords then has

to

approve

the

Brexit deal

.

According to the dpa, it cannot be ruled out that there could be small changes that the first chamber would then have to decide on again.

We looked forward to the formal ratification of the agreement and to working together on shared priorities, such as tackling climate change.

- Boris Johnson (@BorisJohnson) December 28, 2020

Brexit deal: Ursula von der Leyen signs trade agreement on Wednesday - Air Force in action

Update from December 29, 7:53 p.m.:

The dispute over the Brexit trade pact could officially end on Wednesday: EU Commission chief

Ursula von der Leyen

and

Council President Charles Michel

will

sign the

post-Brexit trade agreement

agreed with Great Britain

on Wednesday at 9:30 a.m. sign.

Shortly afterwards, the British Parliament meets in London to debate the agreement.

Its consent is considered certain.

Afterwards, the

British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is to put

his signature on the more than 1200-page agreement.

In order for all of this to work out, Great Britain is resorting to an unusual means.

In a

British Air Force

(RAF)

jet

, the Brexit trade pact will cross the English Channel to get from Brussels to London in time.

On this basis, the

agreement can

be

applied provisionally from January 1st

, even if the

EU Parliament has not yet given

its

approval

.

After a long struggle, both sides agreed on the contract on December 24th.

There is no longer enough time until the end of the year for a regular ratification process.

Therefore, the agreed rules are to be applied temporarily until at least February 28th.

Brexit and the consequences: Erasmus exchange with Great Britain before the end - Johnson promises new program

Update from December 29th, 2:07 p.m

.: The

Erasmus program is

intended to support students from the

European Union

.

The funding program enables young EU citizens to study abroad at other universities.

The

post-Brexit agreement

that has now

come about,

however, now ensures the

Erasmus

in

Great Britain

.

Students from the

UK

are among the victims of the Brexit deal - but there is hope.

Great Britain

, which was the third most popular destination for Erasmus participants after Spain and Germany, is allowed to participate in the EU funding program until 2023.

Until then, the partnerships with the relevant universities apply.

However, the new visa regulations that came into force on January 1st could be problematic.

Students still do not need a visa for stays of up to six months, but they also do not receive a work permit. 

Prime Minister

Boris Johnson

, who

justified

the

Erasmus-Aus

with too high costs, wants to create a new program for students.

The

Turing program

(named after the British mathematician Alan Turing) aims to enable 35,000 British students to study "at the best universities in the world and not just in Europe" every year.

Brexit agreement: deadline for EU Council decision ends

Update of 28 December, 19:43

: On Tuesday at 15 o'clock, the deadline for the formal EU Council decision ends the

United Kingdom and Gibraltar European Union membership referendum agreement

.

That said the spokesman for the German

EU Council Presidency

on Monday.

Until then, the agreement is to be approved so that it can also be applied provisionally from January 1st.

Commission President Ursula von der Leyen

and

EU Council President Charles Michel

want to give a video press conference on Tuesday evening or Wednesday. The

British Parliament will vote

on the agreement on

Wednesday

.

But this time an approval is considered certain.

Brexit agreement: 27 ambassadors from the EU member states tentatively approve the project

Update from December 28, 12.20 p.m.:

After the final agreement between the European Union and Great Britain, the EU initiated the provisional application of the treaty from January 1 on Monday.

The 27 ambassadors of the member states provisionally approved the project.

As a spokesman for the German Council Presidency announced on Twitter, a decision was made in writing.

‼ ️Green light for #BrexitDeal: EU Ambassadors have unanimously approved the provisional application of the EU-UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement as of January 1, 2021.

👉 Next step: Final adoption by use of written procedure.

Deadline: Tomorrow, 15.00 hours.

#TCA #COREPER 🇪🇺🇬🇧 pic.twitter.com/k76Iei9xm0

- Sebastian Fischer (@SFischer_EU) December 28, 2020

The provisional application

without parliament

is necessary because the time is too short to determine the project before the end of the year in the European Parliament.

This should be made up for after January 1st.

The transition phase since Great Britain left the EU expires on December 31.

This means that the country is leaving the internal market and the customs union.

The contract is intended to

prevent

a

hard economic break

.

The British Parliament is due to vote on December 30th.

Brexit deal: Federal cabinet appreciates the agreement

Update from December 28th, 12 noon:

The Federal Cabinet has

endorsed

the

Brexit agreement

between the EU and Great Britain.

The members of the cabinet agreed in their "positive appreciation" of the agreement, said the deputy government spokeswoman Ulrike Demmer on Monday in Berlin.

Germany could agree to the agreement.

Update from December 26th, 1:04 pm:

1255 pages: Great Britain and the EU have their laboriously negotiated

trading

package

published for the time after the

Brexit

transition phase.

The contract is intended to regulate issues relating to trade, cooperation between the police and the judiciary and health insurance coverage for travelers in emergencies.

Brexit deal: consequences for companies

Update from December 26th, 10:03 am:

The news of the

trade agreement

between Great Britain and the EU made the rounds on Christmas Eve.

But what exactly does it say?

We are still

waiting

impatiently for

details

from the agreement.

So far, both sides have only published summaries, the more than 1200-page text of the contract is still pending.

But

the details are

especially important for

companies

.

"Companies will immediately study the details as soon as they can," said Tony Danker, director general of the British business association CBI (Confederation of British Industry), according to dpa after the breakthrough was announced.

Brexit: Great Britain withdraws from the European Erasmus program - reason: "extremely expensive"

Update from December 25th, 4.40 p.m.:

Despite the Christmas trade agreement:

Brexit

means painful cuts for some people.

It is now clear that this group will include many young

students in Europe

.

After more than 30 years, Great Britain is withdrawing from the

European Erasmus program

for students

as part of the post-Brexit agreement

.

It was a "difficult decision", said British

Prime Minister Boris Johnson

on Thursday after the agreement on a

trade agreement between London and Brussels

.

The program was "extremely expensive" for his country, Johnson justified the move.

The prime minister also announced a replacement program.

He wanted to enable British students to study at the “best universities” in the world and not just in Europe.

For the almost

150,000 students from EU countries

currently

enrolled at British universities, studying

abroad at universities in the United Kingdom is likely to become more expensive and more difficult.

Brexit: trade pact is in place, big tasks are waiting - meeting on Monday?

Update from December 25th, 3:33 p.m.:

The Brexit trade pact has been found in principle after a long hanging game - but the

27 member states

still have to approve the negotiation result.

The German spokesman spoke of a "huge task".

Even the actual

trade agreement

is 1246 pages long.

There are also other agreements, a total of 1298 pages of contract text.

These must now be checked in the 27 member states.

According to information from the

AFP

news

agency

, a meeting of the

EU ambassadors is

planned on Monday.

If all goes well there, the ambassadors will initiate a written procedure that would pave the way for the signing and provisional application of the agreement.

The provisional application was "an extraordinary step," said the spokesman for the German

EU Presidency

.

The aim is to prevent "a significant disruption of relations between the

EU

and

Great Britain

with serious consequences for citizens and businesses" after the end of the transition period on January 1st.

The

approval process has also been initiated

in

Great Britain

.

To this end, Parliament is to be called to an extraordinary session on December 30th.

The

Labor Party

has already announced that it will vote for the agreement.

This would mean that deviants in the conservative government camp would not prevent approval.

The pre-Christmas peace has spurred the conversations between the 🇪🇺 and 🇬🇧.

It is very good news that both sides have finally agreed on a regulated Brexit.

Late, but not too late.

That's good for 🇩🇪, for 🇪🇺and🇬🇧.

And: We'll stay friends, dear Brits.

pic.twitter.com/DaxAAmTKsO

- Olaf Scholz (@OlafScholz) December 24, 2020

Brexit deal at Christmas: EU member states agree on trade deals

Update from December 25th, 12 noon:

The

EU member states

have started examining the

Brexit trade agreement

with Great Britain.

EU negotiator

Michel Barnier briefed

the ambassadors of the 27 member states on Friday morning in Brussels about the outcome of the negotiations, as a spokesman for the German EU presidency announced on Twitter.

Accordingly, the contract text is 1246 pages long.

The spokesman called it a "daunting task" to review the deal in the coming days.

On the EU side, the governments of all

27 member states

still have to approve the outcome of the negotiations, while in

Great Britain

the parliament has to agree.

The aim is for the agreement to come into force on January 1st.

The ratification by the

European Parliament

is to take place in retrospect at the beginning of 2021.

Update from December 24th, 6.48pm:

"European unity and stability have paid off": France's head of state

Emmanuel Macron

has also

welcomed

the agreement on the

Brexit trade pact

between the EU and Great Britain.

France often followed a hardline line in the Brexit tussle.

“The deal with the UK is important to protect our citizens, our fishermen and our producers,”

Macron

continued.

One will now convince oneself whether this is really the case.

"Europe is making progress and can look forward to a united, independent and strong future," said Macron.

Christmas miracles!

Brexit deal stands - Merkel and Johnson react

Update from December 24th, 5:23 pm:

"I think this is a good deal for all of Europe," said

Boris Johnson

about the final Brexit deal.

“We will be your friend, your partner, your supporter, and let's not forget your number one market.” Chancellor Merkel and Ursula von der Leyen reacted in a similar way.

From the point of view of the Johnson administration,

everything

that the British public wanted with the 2016 Brexit referendum

has been achieved

with the agreement

.

"We have regained control of our money, our borders, our laws, our trade and our fishing grounds," said the government.

At the same time, the agreement grants

duty-free

and

unlimited exports

to the EU.

Boris Johnson showed on Twitter that he is very happy about the deal.

He posted a photo of himself holding both thumbs in the air.

"The deal is done,"

he wrote.

The deal is done.

pic.twitter.com/zzhvxOSeWz

- Boris Johnson (@BorisJohnson) December 24, 2020

Update from December 24, 4:34 p.m

.: Chancellor

Angela Merkel

* has recognized the Brexit agreement

(see first report)

as

historical

.

"With the agreement we are creating the basis for a new chapter in our relations," said the

CDU *

politician

.

"Great Britain will continue to be an important partner for Germany and for the European Union outside the European Union." The agreement was "of historical importance".

Christmas miracles!

Brexit deal stands after agreement on the last crucial point - Merkel reacts

Merkel agreed to check the text quickly.

The federal cabinet will come to an agreement on the German position by telephone next Monday.

"I am very confident that we have a good result here," said the Chancellor.

All member states and the EU Parliament must agree to the agreement.

Chancellor #Merkel on the agreement between the #EU and Great Britain: “The agreement is of historic importance.

With the agreement we are creating the basis for a new chapter in our relationships. ”#BrexitDeal https://t.co/GcgbxIPhLY pic.twitter.com/fgCu98LQlx

- Ulrike Demmer (@UlrikeDemmer) December 24, 2020

Christmas miracles!

Brexit deal stands - agreement with EU on the last crucial point

Our initial report on December 24th

: London -

A tough economic break appears to have been averted

with

Brexit

: After months of debates on a

trade pact

, the

EU

and

Great Britain

have reached an agreement.

Both sides confirmed this on Thursday afternoon.

EU Commission chief

Ursula von der Leyen

and negotiator

Michel Barnier

announced a

press conference

.

The trade agreement is intended to

regulate

economic relations between the island and the continent from

January 2021

.

The most important point is

to avoid

tariffs

and ensure the smoothest possible trade.

The contract also includes

fishing

and cooperation on energy, transport, justice, police and many other topics.

Brexit agreement with the Johnson government: negotiations were on the verge of failure

A very last

sticking point

that had been heatedly debated for weeks: the access of

EU fishermen

to

British waters

.

The clarification of the last details dragged on for

many hours

until Thursday noon.

Finally, a compromise was found here too.

The negotiations should actually have been concluded in October.

Several times they were on the verge of failure.

The agreement promises Great Britain exports to the EU internal market without tariffs and without volume restrictions.

For this, however, the EU demands fair competitive conditions - the so-called

level playing field

.

What is meant are the same environmental, social and subsidy standards.

+

Britain's Prime Minister Boris Johnson at the Brexit PC on December 21 - negotiations dragged on.

© Tolga Akmen / various sources / AFP

Great Britain in Brexit negotiations - Corona mutation exacerbates the situation

The worsening

corona pandemic *

in Great Britain

had recently

built up further pressure.

After a mutated variant of

Sars-CoV-2 was

discovered, France temporarily closed its borders to

traffic

from Great Britain.

That is why thousands of trucks were jammed on the British side - from the point of view of critics a foretaste of the situation in a

no-deal Brexit

.

The British voters in 2016 voted with a narrow majority in favor of leaving the EU.

Prime Minister Boris Johnson

won the parliamentary elections in 2019, among other things with the announcement that Brexit will actually be carried out.

As a central point, he repeatedly mentioned regaining sovereignty and control over one's own borders and laws.

(dpa / frs)

* Merkur.de is part of the Ippen-Digital editorial network.

List of rubric lists: © Yui Mok / dpa