Ambassadors of all EU member states gave the green light for the post-Brexit trade agreement to provisionally enter into force on 1 January.
A post-Brexit trade agreement between the European Union and the United Kingdom was announced on Thursday, just eight days before the end of a transition period during which the UK remained part of the EU’s single market and customs union.
The provisional approval was announced by a spokesperson for the German Presidency of the EU Council, who added that the next step was a “final adoption by use of written procedure,” which is to happen by 3:00 PM on Tuesday.
‼️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 draft agreement, which is over 1,200 pages long, comes nearly ten months after chief Brexit negotiators Michel Barnier and David Frost and their teams started negotiations on a post-Brexit trade agreement at the beginning of March.
Members of European Parliament will vote on the deal after it provisionally enters into force, as Brexit discussions continued past the deadline set by the Parliament to ratify the agreement before the new year.
Jason Spinks
The Brussels Times
