The British House of Commons approved the Brexit trade deal with the European Union, and it has been signed by the Queen. The vote was 521 to 73. The affirmative votes included most Labor Party MPs, who, under the order of party leader Keir Starmer, were obliged to vote in favor of the agreement in order to avoid chaos if no deal were reached before the December 31 deadline. The House of Lords also backed the deal. The agreement passed just in time, as the transition period ends at 11 p.m. in London, on Dec. 31, thus avoiding a no- deal Brexit. As usual these days, the House deliberated over the 1,200-page document for only five hours, which did manage to upset a few MPs.
On December 29, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President Charles Michel signed the agreement during a brief ceremony in Brussels. It has not yet been given the rubber stamp by the European Parliament, which could take several weeks. Nonetheless, the agreement will take effect on January 1.
British Prime Minister Boris Johnson told the House of Commons that the deal heralded “a new relationship between Britain and the EU as sovereign equals.”
The agreement will ensure that Britain and the 27-nation EU can continue to trade in goods.
Former Conservative Prime Minister Theresa May, who resigned in 2019 after three years of Brexit acrimony in Parliament, said she would vote for Johnson’s agreement. But she said it was worse than the one she had negotiated with the bloc, which lawmakers repeatedly rejected. She pointed out that the deal protected trade in goods but did not cover services, which account for 80% of Britain’s economy.
“We have a deal in trade, which benefits the EU, but not a deal in services, which would have benefited the U.K.,” May said.
The UK must now sign independent trade agreements with all countries.
