Back in November 2020, the UK government published the Freeports Bidding Prospectus, formally opening the bidding process to establish what it hopes will be at least seven new Freeports across England. You can read our analysis of the tax reliefs contained in the Prospectus, here: Freeports in England: The Tax Offering. As part of the … Continue Reading
On Monday 16 November 2020, the UK government published the Freeports Bidding Prospectus, formally opening the bidding process to establish what it hopes will be at least seven new Freeports across England. The devolved administrations will oversee their own bidding process for creating new Freeports in Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland. Here we look at … Continue Reading
On Wednesday 7 October 2020, the UK government published the Response document to the Freeports Consultation that was originally launched in February 2020. With the UK simultaneously negotiating multiple new free trade agreements, freeports could make a significant contribution to making the UK’s post-Brexit economic and trade policy truly global. The creation of freeports is … Continue Reading
Prime Minister Boris Johnson promises that the UK will leave the EU on 31 October with “no ifs or buts”. With three months left until the UK is due to leave the EU, the Prime Minister states that he hopes to negotiate a better deal, but concern remains that the UK will leave the EU … Continue Reading
The European Commission has published an important notice warning of the consequences that Brexit will have in the field of industrial products, which are subject to CE Marking requirements when placed on the European Union (EU) market. For those products, the European Commission confirmed that to demonstrate compliance with CE Marking requirements for products placed … Continue Reading
Brexit takes us to Geneva Some say that Brexit negotiations with third countries have not yet started. They are forgetting an important prerequisite. For the UK to control and negotiate its own commercial policy independently, the journey could only start in Geneva. Here is why …… Continue Reading
The approach in the European Union (Withdrawal) Bill remains the only conceivable way that the UK can both manage to leave the EU and have a working legislative framework on 30 March 2019 by simultaneously repealing the European Communities Act 1972 and incorporating the large body of EU law on which the legal system depends. … Continue Reading
More than a year has passed since the UK voted to withdraw from the European Union without much clarity ever given to businesses on what the terms of the intra-EU trade with the remaining EU27 would look like post-March 2019. This has led to many of our clients planning for the worst possible option, i.e. … Continue Reading
Clash of Philosophies There is a potentially irreconcilable clash of constitutional philosophies between the UK and the EU which results in certain “no go” areas on the EU side for the forthcoming Brexit negotiations. Perspective of the EU27 The EU27’s approach is driven by the perception that the European Union is not merely representative of … Continue Reading