BREXIT

INTRODUCTION
 Area : 243,610 sq km
England 53%, Scotland 32%, Wales 9%,
and Northern Ireland 6%
Country comparison to the world: 81
 Parliamentary constitutional monarchy
 Population: 65,105,246
England: 55,268,100
Scotland: 5,404,700
Wales: 3,113,200
Northern Ireland: 1,862,10
Country comparison to the world: 22
 WHAT DOES BREXIT MEAN?

It is a word that is used as a shorthand way of saying the UK

leaving the EU - merging the words Britain and exit to get Brexit,
in the same way as a possible Greek exit from the euro was
dubbed Grexit in the past
 HISTORY- BREXIT
 The UK joined the European Communities (EC) in 1973 under
the Conservative government of Edward Heath, with continued
membership endorsed by a referendum in 1975.

 In the 1970s and 1980s, withdrawal from the EC was

advocated mainly by the political left, with the Labour Party's 1983
election manifesto advocating full withdrawal.

 From the 1990s, opposition to further European integration

came mainly from the right, and divisions within the Conservative
Party led to rebellion over the Maastricht Treaty in 1992.

 The growth of the UK Independence Party (UKIP) in the early

2010s and the influence of the cross-party People's Pledge
campaign have been described as influential in bringing about a
referendum.
Conti…..
 The Conservative Prime Minister, David Cameron, pledged
during the campaign for the 2015 UK General Election to hold a
new referendum—a promise which he fulfilled in 2016 following
pressure from the Eurosceptic wing of his party.

 Cameron, who had campaigned to remain, resigned after the

result and was succeeded by Theresa May, his former Home
Secretary.

 She called a snap general election less than a year later, but
lost her overall majority. Her minority government is supported in
key votes by the Democratic Unionist Party.
WHY IS BRITAIN LEAVING THE EUROPEAN UNION?

 A referendum was held on Thursday 23 June, 2016, to

decide whether the UK should leave or remain in the European
Union.

 Leave won by 51.9% to 48.1%. The referendum turnout was

71.8%, with more than 30 million people voting
WHAT WAS THE BREAKDOWN ACROSS THE UK?
 England voted for Brexit, by 53.4% to 46.6%

 Wales also voted for Brexit, with Leave getting 52.5% of the
vote and Remain 47.5%

 Scotland backed Remain by 62% to 38%

 55.8% Northern Ireland voted Remain and 44.2% Leave

 WHAT IS THE EUROPEAN UNION?
 The EU traces its origins to the European Coal and Steel
Community (ECSC) and the European Economic Community
(EEC), established, respectively, by the 1951 Treaty of Paris and
1957 Treaty of Rome.

 It began after World War Two to foster economic co-operation,

with the idea that countries which trade together were more likely
to avoid going to war with each other.

 The original members of what came to be known as the

European Communities were the Inner Six: Belgium, France, Italy,
Luxembourg, the Netherlands, and West Germany.

 The EU and European citizenship were established when the

Maastricht Treaty came into force in 1993

Conti…..
 The Communities and its successors have grown in size by
the accession of new member states and in power by the
addition of policy areas to its remit

 Political partnership involving 28 European countries now

 It has since grown to become a "single market" allowing

goods and people to move around, basically as if the member
states were one country.

 It has its own currency, the euro, which is used by 19 of the

member countries, its own parliament and it now sets rules in a
wide range of areas - including on the environment, transport,
consumer rights and even things such as mobile phone charges
 WHAT WERE THEIR REASONS FOR WANTING THE UK TO
LEAVE?
 Britain was being held back by the EU, which they said
imposed too many rules on business

 Charged billions of pounds a year in membership fees for little

in return

 They also wanted the UK to make all of its own laws again,
rather than being created through shared decision making with
other EU nations

 Immigration was also a big issue for Brexit supporters, they

wanted Britain to take back full control of its borders and reduce
the number of people coming here to live and/or work

 Leave campaign claimed the money Britain sends to the EU,

which it claimed was £350m a week, could be spent on the NHS
instead
 WHEN IS THE UK DUE TO LEAVE THE EU?
 The UK had been due to leave on 29 March 2019, two years
after it started the exit process by invoking Article 50 of the EU's
Lisbon Treaty.

 But the withdrawal agreement reached between the EU and

UK has been rejected three times by UK MP.

 EU leaders agreed to extend the Article 50 process further

and the current Brexit date is 12 April 2019 .

 However, Theresa May has again requested an extension

until 30 June
 WHY SUCH DELAY?

 The main point of having a deal between the UK and the EU is

to ensure as smooth as possible an exit from the EU for
businesses and individuals - and to allow time for the two sides to
hammer out a permanent trading relationship
 WHAT IS THE WITHDRAWAL AGREEMENT?
Transition

 The transition period (which the UK government calls

"implementation period") is due to last for 21 months.

 The UK will need to abide by all EU rules, but will lose

membership of its institutions.

 The draft withdrawal agreement says the transition can be

extended, but only for a period of one or two years.

 Both the UK and EU must agree to any extension.

 There will be no UK presence in the European Parliament, at

the top table of the European Commission or in the European
Court of Justice during transition.
Advantage

 The great advantage of transition, of course, is that it buys

more time for businesses and governments to prepare for a
new regime, and it soothes the path out of the EU.

 Transition also gives the UK continued access to EU

databases on crucial issues like security while a future
relationship is negotiated.
Money

 The draft agreement sets out the calculations for the

financial settlement (or "divorce bill") that the UK will need to
pay to the EU to settle all of its obligations.

 While no figure appears in the document, it is expected to

be at least £39bn and it will be paid over a number of years.

 Part of that money will be the financial contribution that the

UK has to make during the transition period.

 In 2018/19 the UK's contribution to the EU budget is

forecast to be a net £10.8bn.

 If the transition is extended, there will have to be additional

UK payments to the EU budget, which will be agreed separate.
 It seems a long time now since the size of the "divorce bill"
was the big issue that was never going to be resolved, but the
government knew that without a financial settlement, progress
on other issues would be impossible.

 Money remains a cause of controversy, though, because

many Brexit supporters hate the fact that large sums will be
handed over without any cast-iron guarantee about the nature
of the UK's future trade relationship with the EU.
Citizens' rights

 This is broadly unchanged from the initial draft of the

withdrawal agreement which came out in March

 UK citizens in the EU, and EU citizens in the UK, will retain

their residency and social security rights after Brexit

 Citizens who take up residency in another EU country during

the transition period (including the UK of course) will be allowed
to stay in that country after the transition

 Anyone that stays in the same EU country for five years will
be allowed to apply for permanent residence
Fishing

 The agreement says that a separate agreement will need to

be reached on access to EU fishing in UK water.
WHAT WOULD HAPPEN IF THE UK LEFT WITHOUT A DEAL?
 The UK would sever all ties with the EU with immediate effect,
with no transition period and no guarantees on citizens' rights of
residence

 The government fears this would cause significant disruption

to businesses in the short-term, with lengthy tailbacks of lorries at
the channel ports, as drivers face new checks on their cargos

 Food retailers have warned of shortages of fresh produce and

the NHS is stockpiling medicines, in case supplies from EU
countries are interrupted

 Government ministers and multinational companies with

factories in the UK have also warned about the long-term impact
on the British economy

 Brexit-supporting MPs claim it would not be as bad as they

say and the UK would save on the £39bn divorce bill, as well as
being free to strike its own beneficial trade deals around the world
 WOULD TRADE WITH THE EU CONTINUE?

 The World Trade Organization sets rules for countries that

don't have free trade deals with each other, including tariffs - the
taxes charged on the import of goods

 Without an agreement on trade, the UK would trade with

the EU under World Trade Organization rules
 WHAT IS THE BACKSTOP?
 When the UK leaves the EU, the 310-mile border between Ireland
and Northern Ireland will become the land border between the UK and
the European Union

 Neither side wants to see a return to checkpoints, towers, customs

posts or surveillance cameras at the border, in case it reignites the
Troubles and disrupts the free cross-border flow of trade and people

 The UK and EU agreed to put in place a "backstop" - a kind of

safety net to ensure there is no hard border whatever the outcome of
future trade talks between the UK and the EU

 The backstop agreed between the two parties would keep Northern
Ireland aligned to some EU rules on things like food products and
goods standards

 That would prevent the need for checks on goods at the Irish
border, but would require some products being brought to Northern
Ireland from the rest of the UK to be subject to new checks and
controls
 WHY ARE SO MANY MPS AGAINST IT?

 The backstop was a key sticking point for many MPs who
voted down the deal

 They feared it could leave Britain tied to the EU indefinitely

with no say over its rules and no ability to strike trade deals with
other countries
Divorce Bill

 The £39bn "divorce bill" will cover things like pension

payments to EU officials, the cost of relocating London-based EU
agencies and outstanding EU budget commitments
 WHAT HAS HAPPENED TO THE UK ECONOMY SINCE THE
BREXIT VOTE?
 The day after the referendum - and is currently about 10%
down against the dollar, and 10%-15% down against the euro

 Predictions of immediate doom were wrong, with the UK

economy estimated to have grown 1.8% in 2016, second only to
Germany's 1.9% among the world's G7 leading industrialised
nations

 The UK economy continued to grow at almost the same rate in

2017 but slowed to 1.4% in 2018, the slowest rate since 2012.

 Inflation rose after June 2016, reaching a five-year high of

3.1% in November 2017

 However it has since eased, to stand at 1.8%. Unemployment

has continued to fall, to stand at a 43-year year low of 4%.
Conti…..
 Annual house price increases have steadily fallen from 8.2%
in June 2016 to 1.7% in the year to January 2019, according to
official figures

 That impact will leaving have on the UK's long term political
influence in Europe

 Self-confident, assertive role on the world stage

Sri Lanka Effect

 The UK and the EU are important trading partners of the

country

 Overall, the EU including the UK purchased nearly 29% of

our exports in 2015

 Due to the prevailing soft economic condition in the Europe,

the share of our exports to the EU has declined from 34% in
2011

 Sri Lanka had shipped 9.8% of its exports to the UK in 2015

while the European Union ex UK had purchased 19%

 As a single block, the EU remains behind only to the United

States in terms of merchandising exports
Conti…..
 UK will not be part of the EU single market and no trade
concession, such as GSP plus, will be offered as a part of the
EU policy

 Sri Lanka is looking to revive the GSP plus concessionary

access to EU region

 No longer will Sri Lanka be able to claim benefits from the

UK in the event of successful renegotiation of the GSP Plus
?