Cabinet Office
Policy paper
Joint statement by the co-chairs of the EU-UK
Joint Committee
Published 8
December 2020
The
co-chairs of the EU-UK Joint Committee – European Commission Vice-President
Maroš Šefčovič and the UK Chancellor of the Duchy of Lancaster, the Rt Hon
Michael Gove – yesterday held a political meeting to address the outstanding
issues related to the implementation of the Withdrawal Agreement. Ensuring that
the Withdrawal Agreement, in particular the Protocol on Ireland and Northern
Ireland, is fully operational at the end of the transition period, i.e. as of 1
January 2021, is essential. The Protocol protects the Belfast (Good Friday)
Agreement in all its dimensions, maintaining peace, stability and prosperity on
the island of Ireland.
Following
intensive and constructive work over the past weeks by the EU and the UK, the
two co-chairs can now announce their agreement in principle on all issues, in
particular with regard to the Protocol on Ireland and Northern Ireland.
An
agreement in principle has been found in the following areas, amongst others:
Border Control Posts/Entry Points specifically for checks on animals, plants
and derived products, export declarations, the supply of medicines, the supply
of chilled meats, and other food products to supermarkets, and a clarification
on the application of State aid under the terms of the Protocol.
The parties
have also reached an agreement in principle with respect to the decisions the
Joint Committee has to take before 1 January 2021. In particular, this concerns
the practical arrangements regarding the EU’s presence in Northern Ireland when
UK authorities implement checks and controls under the Protocol, determining
criteria for goods to be considered “not at risk” of entering the EU when
moving from Great Britain to Northern Ireland, the exemption of agricultural
and fish subsidies from State aid rules, the finalisation of the list of
chairpersons of the arbitration panel for the dispute settlement mechanism so
that the arbitration panel can start operating as of next year, as well as the
correction of errors and omissions in Annex 2 of the Protocol.
In view of
these mutually agreed solutions, the UK will withdraw clauses 44, 45 and 47 of
the UK Internal Market Bill, and not introduce any similar provisions in the
Taxation Bill.
1. Next
steps
This
agreement in principle and the resulting draft texts will now be subject to
respective internal procedures in the EU and in the UK. Once this is done, a
fifth regular meeting of the EU-UK Joint Committee will be convened to formally
adopt them. This will take place in the coming days and before the end of the
year.
UK agrees to
withdraw clauses that violated 'Brexit' deal
The decision is seen as bringing a "positive
impetus" to the negotiations on the EU-UK trade agreement three weeks
before the end of the transition period.
PUBLIC 8 December
2020, 14:48
With the united
kingdom's renunciation of clauses on Northern Ireland which breached the
agreement to leave the European Union, the technical negotiating teams of the
27 and the Uk Government concluded work on the implementation of the agreement
from 1 January 2021 and, above all, the Protocol on Ireland and Northern
Ireland.
Michael Gove, one
of Boris Johnson's most important cabinet ministers, announced "an
agreement in principle on all matters, in particular with regard to the
Protocol on Ireland and Northern Ireland."
Irish Foreign
Minister Simon Conveney issued a statement that he was pleased with the
positive outcome on the issue of implementing the protocol, hoping that it
could bring a positive boost to the current negotiations on the very
pericles-looking TRADE AGREEMENT between the UK and the EU.
"I welcome
the positive news today [Tuesday] announced that an agreement has been reached
in principle on outstanding issues relating to the implementation of the
Protocol on Ireland and Northern Ireland. Of particular importance is the UK's
commitment to withdraw clauses 44, 45 and 47 from the internal market bill,
aligning it again with its obligations under the withdrawal agreement,"
the Irish minister wrote.
For Conveney,
this is a "positive development" and one that can "bring some
necessary positive momentum to incite trust and respect and allow progress in
the more general context of negotiations on the future relationship" of
the EU with the UK.
After, on Monday,
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson, have talked to European Commission
President Ursula von der Leyen and both have come to the conclusion in a joint
statement that "the conditions for finalising an agreement are not yet met
and that significant differences remain on three critical issues: competition,
fisheries and dispute resolution", this seems to be a good sign that an
agreement can still be reached before the end of the transition period. 31
December.
At a press
conference on Tuesday, The Vice-President of the European Commission for
Interinstitutional Relations, Maros Sefcovic was also pleased with the "very
positive outcome" of the negotiations.
"After
intensive and constructive work by the EU and the UK in recent weeks, the two
co-chairmen can announce their agreement of principles on all matters,
especially with regard to the Protocol on Ireland and Northern Ireland,"
the joint statement says.
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