Brexit is back. The British have now left the European Union, but the two parties are still arguing about their future relationship. Time is running out and the news is piling up quickly, so we’ll have a quick update on what happened this week.
The United Kingdom became the first country to approve Pfizer’s and BioNTech’s promising corona vaccine for emergency use on Wednesday. As a result, the most vulnerable group of Britons can get an injection against the corona virus from next week.
Conservative politicians took the opportunity to celebrate the ‘British success’ and pointed to Brexit as the reason for the rapid availability of the vaccine. “We do the same security checks and use the same processes as the EU, but we have been able to accelerate these through Brexit,” said Health Minister Matt Hancock.
The beating of the Conservative government of Prime Minister Boris Johnson was soon debunked later. Due to the transition period, the British are still under the umbrella of the European Medicines Agency (EMA) and have simply used a clause available for every EU country. This clause allows national authorities to bypass the EMA in an emergency.
A little optimism about the deal, but that quickly evaporates
In addition to vaccine optimism, there was also talk of deal optimism on Thursday and Friday. The EU and the UK would come closer and closer to a trade deal in London after some concessions on both sides. EU president Charles Michel then says he expects a definite answer from the negotiations within “a few hours or days”.
Friday evening it becomes clear that the decision will be delayed. EU negotiator Michel Barnier and his British counterpart David Frost jointly announce via Twitter that they will temporarily halt the negotiations. “Major differences remain in the areas of competition rules, supervision and fisheries,” the statement reads.
Johnson and Von der Leyen can break open conversations
Barnier and Frost are now handing over their relay baton to the big names: British Prime Minister Boris Johnson and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. They will discuss their Brexit positions over the phone on Saturday.
The fact that the negotiators are unable to reach an agreement is not necessarily bad news. They only carry out what they are told to do and have apparently come to the conclusion that there is insufficient room to reach a deal. Who can increase that negotiating space? Correct: Von der Leyen and Johnson.
The ball is now in the hands of the political bosses of the two parties. If they both add enough water to the wine, there can be an agreement quickly; the two parties have little time left before the new year begins. If the two refuse to settle, then the dreaded no-deal scenario comes very close.
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