Michel Barnier: Post-Brexit transition to end December 2020

The EU’s chief negotiator says the framework of a future relationship between the UK and EU must be negotiated by October.

The EU wants a post-Brexit transition period to end on December 31, 2020, its chief Brexit negotiator Michel Barnier told reporters.

The European Commission on Wednesday put forward a draft negotiating mandate that calls for a transition period following the U.K.’s formal withdrawal from the EU, during which London would have to fulfill all obligations while losing all voting rights in the bloc.

“The European Union’s position is that this would run logically to the 31st of December 2020, because that is also the duration of the current multiannual financial framework [the EU’s seven-year budget cycle],” Barnier said.

He did not comment on what would happen at that point if the U.K. was not ready to end the transition at the end of 2020, or how the U.K.’s payments into the EU budget would be calculated in the event of any prolonging of the transition period.

Speaking at a news conference in Brussels, Barnier said that on the day of withdrawal the EU’s international agreements, including its existing free-trade agreements and accords with other countries, would no longer apply to the U.K. and London should take steps to renegotiate them.

“Legally speaking, mechanically, the day after the U.K. has left the EU institutions, the U.K. will no longer be covered by our international agreements,” Barnier said. “They will be leaving approximately 750 agreements, which we have signed.”

Reacting to Barnier’s proposal for a shorter transition period, a spokesperson for Theresa May said: “The prime minster has said around two years, the point about our implementation period is we want it to be precisely or just as long as is needed to get the arrangement in place. That is the whole point of an implementation period.”

“We are currently looking at around two years, 24 months; the Commission have said just over 21 months, but it is a negotiation, and that will begin shortly.”

“Across the piste they are setting out their negotiating position and that is exactly what you would expect to happen at this stage in the process,” the spokesperson added.

Barnier also said that the framework of the future relationship between the U.K. and the EU, presumably a robust trade deal and political association agreement, must be known by October, to give time for ratification of a withdrawal agreement by the European Parliament and the British parliament, so it is clear what follows the transition. He refused to speculate on what would happen if the U.K. parliament rejects the eventual Brexit deal. “In general I hate speculation and speculators,” he said.

The EU chief negotiator also did not elaborate on reports that Spain is seeking an agreement with the U.K. on Gibraltar as a condition for agreeing to the transition, which requires the unanimous support of the EU27. “I can confirm that for the transition period, as for everything else, I will be working to ensure that the decisions that are made will be made unanimously by consensus,” he told reporters.

Speaking in the House of Commons Wednesday, May made clear she would not forget about the Rock. “We’re not going to exclude Gibraltar from our negotiations from either the implementation agreement or the future agreement,” she said.

The negotiating mandate will now be sent to the European Council, where it is expected to be turned into detailed negotiating directives to be issued in late January. The directives on negotiating the transition will be followed by further directives on the talks about the framework of a future relationship.

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