As the Prime Minister, Theresa May, prepares to trigger the
Article 50 EU exit mechanism this week, Open Europe has today published a new
report, ‘Nothing to declare: A plan for UK-EU trade outside the Customs
Union.’
The study concludes that leaving the EU’s Customs Union is the only logical step for the UK to pursue an independent trade policy and achieve a truly ‘Global Britain’ outside the EU. Open Europe assesses different models of collaboration outside a customs union, and argues that the UK and the EU should aim for full cooperation on the practicalities and administration of customs as part of a comprehensive UK-EU free trade deal.
Open Europe’s Policy Analyst, Aarti Shankar, said:
“We have looked at the evidence and at international examples, and conclude that leaving the EU’s Customs Union is the right decision for the UK. If the UK remained in the Customs Union after Brexit, it would not be able to meet the Government’s ambition of conducting an independent trade policy and achieving a truly ‘Global Britain’.
“There is a trade-off between minimising disruption to UK-EU trade and ensuring the UK is able to shape its own trade policy post-Brexit. Any model that keeps the UK ‘half-in’ the EU’s Customs Union would constrain its ability to strike trade deals across the world.
“The UK and the EU should aim for full customs cooperation as part of a comprehensive Free Trade Agreement. This is perfectly achievable, and the EU already holds customs facilitation agreements with other trade partners, including Switzerland and Canada.” Open Europe.
The study concludes that leaving the EU’s Customs Union is the only logical step for the UK to pursue an independent trade policy and achieve a truly ‘Global Britain’ outside the EU. Open Europe assesses different models of collaboration outside a customs union, and argues that the UK and the EU should aim for full cooperation on the practicalities and administration of customs as part of a comprehensive UK-EU free trade deal.
Open Europe’s Policy Analyst, Aarti Shankar, said:
“We have looked at the evidence and at international examples, and conclude that leaving the EU’s Customs Union is the right decision for the UK. If the UK remained in the Customs Union after Brexit, it would not be able to meet the Government’s ambition of conducting an independent trade policy and achieving a truly ‘Global Britain’.
“There is a trade-off between minimising disruption to UK-EU trade and ensuring the UK is able to shape its own trade policy post-Brexit. Any model that keeps the UK ‘half-in’ the EU’s Customs Union would constrain its ability to strike trade deals across the world.
“The UK and the EU should aim for full customs cooperation as part of a comprehensive Free Trade Agreement. This is perfectly achievable, and the EU already holds customs facilitation agreements with other trade partners, including Switzerland and Canada.” Open Europe.
