(2 October 2019) The UK government has set out its proposals for a Brexit deal, which drops a customs union and with no commitments for “extensive level playing field arrangements” which were put in place in the Protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland. Annex 4 of the Protocol notably established a non-regression clause on the level of environmental protection and required the UK to respect EU Treaty principles, including the precautionary principle. The discussion on “open and fair competition” should be developed in the EU-UK future relationship, according to the UK.
Stefan Scheuer