North Thanet MP Sir Roger Gale has this morning given a `cautious welcome` to reports of a new deal on Brexit.
He said: “We shall need to study the fine print carefully and of course any revised Withdrawal Agreement will have to secure the elusive majority in the House but if an agreement has been reached that can prevent us from crashing out of the EU with damaging consequences then that is good news.”
The European Commision says it has recommended the European Council (Article 50) to endorse the agreement reached at negotiator level on the Withdrawal Agreement, including a revised Protocol on Ireland / Northern Ireland, and approve a revised Political Declaration on the framework of the future EU-UK relationship.
The Commission also recommends that the European Parliament give its consent to the agreement. This follows a series of intensive negotiations between the European Commission and UK negotiators over the past few days.
We’ve got a great new deal that takes back control — now Parliament should get Brexit done on Saturday so we can move on to other priorities like the cost of living, the NHS, violent crime and our environment #GetBrexitDone #TakeBackControl
— Boris Johnson (@BorisJohnson) October 17, 2019
Jean-Claude Juncker, President of the European Commission, said: “This agreement is a fair compromise between the EU and the UK. It is testament to the commitment and willingness of both sides to do what is best for EU and UK citizens. We now have a newly agreed Protocol that protects peace and stability on the island of Ireland and fully protects our Single Market. I hope that we can now bring this over the line and provide the certainty our citizens and businesses so deserve.”
Northern Ireland will remain aligned to a limited set of rules related to the EU’s Single Market in order to avoid a hard border,
The main change in the Political Declaration relates to the future EU-UK economic relationship where the current UK government has opted for a model based on a Free Trade Agreement (FTA). The Political Declaration provides for a FTA with zero tariffs and quotas between the EU and the UK. It states that robust commitments on a level playing field should ensure open and fair competition.
Next steps
It is for the European Council (Article 50) to endorse the revised Withdrawal Agreement in its entirety, as well as approve the revised Political Declaration on the framework of the future relationship.
Before the Withdrawal Agreement can enter into force, it needs to be ratified by the EU and the UK. For the EU, the Council of the European Union must authorise the signature of the Withdrawal Agreement, before sending it to the European Parliament for its consent.
The United Kingdom must ratify the agreement according to its own constitutional arrangements.
Brexit is due to come into force on October 31.
It looks like all that “patriotic, principled” opposition to Theresa May’s Brexit deal was so much hot air. This time round, BoJob has come up with a worse deal (Farage is steaming!) but lots of MPs announce how acceptable this version is. So MPs like Gale (and Mackinlay?) will cheerfully vote for this deal regardless of what it involves because they figure it will make Johnson and the Tory Party look successful.
Meanwhile , the North of Ireland gets treated as if it is really a part of the all-Ireland economy(which, in truth, it IS) and is gently removed from full British control. The IRA have been campaigning for this for years and now they going to get it without a shot being fired. All thanks to English Brexit voters! You couldn’t make it up!
And everyone thought Boris was a chump
No wonder this deal is endorsed by Boris he has found a way to sell out the NI
No surprise people. Mr Gale is a true blue tory. He’d sell his grandma if it meant he stays in power. We have been led up the garden path again by Boris who is showing us who he really is or should I say, who he thinks he is. To quote his hero Churchill he is being “economical with the truth”. Thanks for misrepresenting the people of Thanet again Mr. Gale. Good luck with those workers rights you’ve just binned and the effect this deal will have on the low paid. Thatcher would be so proud of you.