Labour MEP for Yorkshire & Humber
To be able to fly across borders, there must be an agreement in place between the countries concerned. Britain has agreements with over 150 countries. Traditionally, these are extremely restrictive, governing down to individual flight slots for specified airlines. Far and away the most permissive and enabling is what we have secured within the European Union.
The “Norway Plus Group” of MPs have put forward a paper called “Common Market 2.0” as a possible alternative Brexit deal to current deal. I analyse how credible it actually is, in this long read.
The 40 reasons to back the Brexit deal published by the Prime Minister to support her deal, are a frantic farrago of frequently fanciful falsehoods, failures, fibs or feeble fabrications. They are listed below with my comments on each of them in red, explaining why this entire document is so disingenuous and should not be […]
Uncertainty reigns supreme in the Brexit negotiations. But what is now clear is that Brexit will weaken our rights, protections and shared standards. And while many hundreds of articles have been written on customs unions and chlorinated chicken, scant attention has been paid to what Brexit specifically means for our youngest generation. How might children be affected by Brexit?
The two year Article 50 period runs out in March 2019, but Theresa May’s terrible handling of the Brexit negotiations, and the Conservative party’s bitter divisions mean that it is still very difficult to predict where the UK will be politically in the next few months.
As the possibility of a no-deal Brexit scenario increases, and the government publishes its “no-deal preparedness” notices, it is worth taking stock of the sheer variety of problems that would arise with a no-deal Brexit.
Despite government assurances to the contrary, the “EU Settlement Scheme” is unlikely to work smoothly for everyone, and in many cases this could have a devastating impact, in particular on some of the most vulnerable. I have been speaking with organisations that help migrants, including EU migrants, integrate in Yorkshire, to hear about how the EU settlement scheme might impact the people they work with.
Consumers across Europe have benefited greatly from EU-wide rules which not only protect them when buying products in their home country, but also when making cross-border purchases. So what benefits might British consumers lose if the UK leaves the EU? And, if we go ahead with Brexit, what measures should the government take to lessen these potential impacts?
It is not just the UK Parliament that will vote on the Withdrawal Agreement. The European Parliament will too.
In each of the five foundations of the Industrial Strategy – ideas, people, infrastructure, business environment and places – we learn more about the advantages of staying in the EU than the supposed opportunities outside it.
After its failure to settle internally on either the “customs partnership” or “maxfac” wheezes to avoid a hard border in Ireland, the government now envisages that the whole of the UK should remain in a customs union with the EU until such time as other solutions are found – a remarkable U-turn.
2% of people in the music world thought that Brexit would be good for the industry. Recent reports show why we should listen to the 98% who know the score.
Being located in a member state of the EU has provided major advantages to the charity sector which will be jeopardised, and could put the beneficiaries of their charitable projects at risk, at home and abroad.
It is becoming increasingly clear that while Theresa May’s Mansion House speech may have applied some sticking plaster on the gaping wounds within the Conservative government, it fails to address vital issues on which it simply offers more unrealistic fudge.
Confuse your customs unions with your comprehensive trade agreements? Not that bothered by NTBs?
There are a lot of trade terms swirling around the media at the moment, so here’s a handy guide to what they mean.
The realisation that any post-Brexit transition period will leave the UK still subject to EU legislation, including modifications to such legislation and new legislation, has given rise to the idea that Britain should extend its membership so as to serve any transition period as a voting member rather than as a “vassal state”.
It is self-evidently young people who are going to have to live longest with the consequences of Brexit, if it happens. These consequences are numerous and wide-ranging.
Theresa May appeared at the dispatch box on Monday afternoon, trying hard to be joyful and triumphant, claiming that she was able to offer a Brexit that would please everyone.
On Friday the EU27 and the UK published a joint report on phase one of the Brexit negotiations. Yet this deal fudges many key issues, and raises new ones. It has given rise to conflicting interpretations within hours of it being published.
At a conference for the agriculture sector in York, four areas of concern about Brexit emerged from those working in the industry: EU Labour, threats to income, future trade agreements and food standards. The government should be listening to their concerns.
A list of all the European Parliament’s Brexit studies
The date of 29 March 2019 is never far from the lips of government ministers. As the two-year period for negotiating our departure from the European Union runs down, that day is heralded by leading Brexiters as one of the few certainties left in this chaotic Brexit process. But, as is often the case, reality is far less straightforward
A sector that doesn’t raise its voice in public (for fear of annoying ministers) but which is very worried about the consequences of Brexit, is the pharmaceutical industry. This is yet another industry which, behind the scenes, is asking for a “bespoke” agreement for its sector with a “deep and comprehensive” trade agreement and even a pharmaceutical protocol.
Officials in the transport sector – the people who keep the British economy moving by road, rail, sea and air – are becoming increasingly concerned about the lack of attention paid to some vital practical implications of Brexit, as negotiations between the UK and the EU stall.
The European Investment Bank (EIB) is the world’s largest international public lending institution, providing loans and long-term project funding at very low interest rates. But the “Brexit means Brexit from every aspect of the EU” position of the Tory right wing is dictating that we must leave even this beneficial body.
The chemicals industry is a vital sector of the UK economy, making up 10% of all UK manufacturing. No wonder then that industry representatives and experts are extremely worried about the consequences of Brexit and the government’s chaotic approach to the negotiations.
What happens to EU citizens’ rights – of EU citizens here and Brits in other EU countries – after Brexit? This is the first key issue of the Article 50 “divorce” negotiations. It is a cause of great anxiety for the millions of citizens affected. In this briefing I look at several of the key areas for negotiation – and the serious implications for millions if they are not resolved.
Negotiations formally start today. The EU envisages around 22 four-week cycles to the negotiations in which each cycle addresses specific issues, with a week of preparation, a week of exchange of papers and explanation, a week of negotiation to find a deal and a week of reporting back to secure agreement with what the negotiators […]
The electorate rejected May’s approach to Brexit. But as a result of losing her majority, she has now made an alliance with the DUP. Uncertainty reigns. There is no majority in Parliament for a hard Brexit, but what is there a majority for?
The utter foolishness of Theresa May’s ‘no deal is better than a bad deal’ mantra when it comes to negotiating a new relationship with the EU is back in every speech by her and senior cabinet ministers as well as appearing in the Conservative manifesto. It can’t be emphasised enough that ‘No deal’ is simply not an option.
Leaving the EU will presumably mean leaving the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP).Currently, some 55% of total UK farm income comes from CAP support. If we don’t want to see a massive decline in our farming sector and an end to some much loved landscapes, replacing that in some way has to be a top priority.
The House of Lords, leading agri-companies and individual farmers are very concerned about the impact of Brexit upon their their sector. Yet the government has given few assurances to this vital sector of our economy.
One of the most important issues in the Brexit debate is the environment, but it is hardly a surprise that this Tory government does not appear to be concerned about how leaving the EU will threaten the UK’s environmental protections, given that one of Theresa May’s first acts as Prime Minister was to scrap the Department for the Energy and Climate Change.
Since the government confirmed that it wants Britain to leave Euratom as well as the EU, there has been alarm over what this means for the UK’s energy supply. Leaving Euratom adds to an already problematic situation regarding traditional and renewable energy sources that arises if we leave the EU.
I was recently given a document entitled “seven key principles for Brexit” produced by the Rail Delivery Group, which works with Network Rail and the passenger and the freight operating companies. Here are some of their key concerns.
Looking at the brochure on Brexit produced by the British Beer and Pub Association, I am struck by some of their key demands.
Visiting several businesses in Grimsby last week to talk with senior managers and employees in the ports, fisheries and seafood processing industries, I was struck by one thing. Business does not like uncertainty. And Brexit makes for very uncertain times.
We go into this general election with the government claiming we have passed the point of no return, in that a notification under Article 50 of Britain’s intention to leave the EU cannot be reversed. They’re wrong. Britain still has the right to change its mind. For a start, there is a clue in the […]
Higher education is one of the sectors of the British economy that will be most clearly and negatively affected by Theresa May’s blind pursuit of a hard Brexit.
Politicians have to understand the public’s concerns about immigration and take action on this. But leaving the European single market primarily because of its provisions on freedom of movement would have a major economic cost, while at the same time changing very little, if anything, in terms of the UK’s ability to control migration. But there is a way to square the circle…
As we celebrate women’s history month it is important not just to look at the past achievements, but to look ahead and see how we can ensure we continue the fight for equality.
The EU’s role has been important.
Theresa May’s statement that we won’t be trying to stay in bits of the EU means that, in principle, we shall also be leaving more than 40 EU agencies (including some located in Britain) which perform tasks on behalf of all member states, including us, over a wide range of policy areas.
The 60-year-old Euratom Treaty is a separate legal entity from the EU. The referendum last June did not concern Euratom. Little thought seems to have been given as to what we should do about our membership.
Much of the debate around Brexit thus far has rightly centred on the government’s shambolic handling of the process, and its cavalier attitude to the potentially disastrous impacts on the UK economy. However on the rather serious constitutional question of Ireland, the Leavers’ astounding recklessness has gone almost unnoticed.
The difficulties that face the fisheries and related industries and communities in the upcoming Brexit negotiations have been at best underestimated, and at worst deliberately misrepresented by those insisting it is simply a matter of ‘taking back our waters’.
I recently chaired a cross-party tripartite meeting for MPs, MEPs and Lords at which I was asked to outline the likely negotiation process for Brexit after Article 50 is triggered. Here is summary of my presentation.
I’ve published a very detailed analysis on the post-Brexit challenges facing Britain when it comes to world trade — an area of difficulty which nearly every commentator seems to underestimate.
On the face of it, it’s clear. The referendum decided that Britain should leave the EU. And yet, despite this, there have been rallies across the country opposing Brexit, several million people signing a petition to Parliament urging it to vote against triggering Article 50, and the devolved Scottish government hinting it could block the process. So why is this?