The main event last week was the government's Supreme Court appeal over the Article 50 (A50) case. After 4 days of intense argument the case came to a close with a reminder from the Court that it will not "overturn the result of the EU referendum" and that the case focused on "the process by which that result can lawfully be brought into effect". Now, we have to wait for the decision of the Supreme Court over whether a parliamentay vote to invoke A50 is required, and to see if the case will go as far as the European Court of Justice, something which could slow Brexit down.
As the SC Judges heard the arguments last Wednesday, a parliamentary vote was held on whether MPs would "respect" the will of the people and back the government's decision to invoke A50 before the end of Match next year, with 461 MPs supporting the motion and 89 against. Whilst the vote was non-binding meaning it can have no effect on the SC case, it is politically important, forcing MPs to show their hand early and reducing the chances of a A50-blocking result when the time to invoke A50 arrives.
The new legal case headed by QC Jolyon Maugham concerning the revocability of A50 opened up for crowdfunding on Friday and secured its £70k target within just 48 hours. This means that the case will now go to the Irish High Court for consideration, and it is predicted that this case may also end up going to the ECJ as the Irish HC may not wish to spend too much time on it. Any unexpected rulings in this case could have a significant effect on the Brexit process, potentially meaning that the government could reject any deal achieved in the negotiations and sort-of call the whole thing off. I'm not sure what to make of this one, could be something, could be nothing, but definitely one to watch out for before March.
The top EU Brexit negotiators have outlined a three-tier approach to negotiations, whereby a final deal can only be negotiated after issues requiring immediate attention like border controls and EU payments, and a transitionary arrangement have been agreed. This is in contrast to David Davis' parallel negotiation approach, where everything is negotiated at once. Guy Verhofstadt has also revealed his plan to offer an individual opt-in on EU citizenship to Brits post-Brexit, an idea which has apparantly now been fast-tracked, and should increase pressure on Theresa May to outline a plan on the future rights of EU citizens in the UK.
As the SC Judges heard the arguments last Wednesday, a parliamentary vote was held on whether MPs would "respect" the will of the people and back the government's decision to invoke A50 before the end of Match next year, with 461 MPs supporting the motion and 89 against. Whilst the vote was non-binding meaning it can have no effect on the SC case, it is politically important, forcing MPs to show their hand early and reducing the chances of a A50-blocking result when the time to invoke A50 arrives.
The new legal case headed by QC Jolyon Maugham concerning the revocability of A50 opened up for crowdfunding on Friday and secured its £70k target within just 48 hours. This means that the case will now go to the Irish High Court for consideration, and it is predicted that this case may also end up going to the ECJ as the Irish HC may not wish to spend too much time on it. Any unexpected rulings in this case could have a significant effect on the Brexit process, potentially meaning that the government could reject any deal achieved in the negotiations and sort-of call the whole thing off. I'm not sure what to make of this one, could be something, could be nothing, but definitely one to watch out for before March.
The top EU Brexit negotiators have outlined a three-tier approach to negotiations, whereby a final deal can only be negotiated after issues requiring immediate attention like border controls and EU payments, and a transitionary arrangement have been agreed. This is in contrast to David Davis' parallel negotiation approach, where everything is negotiated at once. Guy Verhofstadt has also revealed his plan to offer an individual opt-in on EU citizenship to Brits post-Brexit, an idea which has apparantly now been fast-tracked, and should increase pressure on Theresa May to outline a plan on the future rights of EU citizens in the UK.
READING LIST
As the anti-single market sentiment builds, moves towards an EEA-style arrangement - once championed by many on the Leave side, is now being hailed by many as basically the same as EU membership and by others as an outright betrayal. There are lots of myths surrounding the EEA/EFTA option which makes it seem a lot more like EU membership than it really is, and suggest that it would mean "all EU rules but with no say". Here, Phil Hendron doesn't pull any punches in busting them all over again.
Historian Niall Ferguson supported remain before the referendum, but has now revealed that he was wrong for all the wrong reasons. Read his interesting confession here.
Finally, there is much confusion over what exactly the customs union is and the what the implications of leaving it are at the moment, and I confess to getting some of it wrong myself. The media and many politicians however, continue to make the same mistakes. Richard North's monograph on the subject is a great place to start for those who are understandably still a bit unsure.
alex.davies@gmchamber.co.uk
@GMCC_Alex
Historian Niall Ferguson supported remain before the referendum, but has now revealed that he was wrong for all the wrong reasons. Read his interesting confession here.
Finally, there is much confusion over what exactly the customs union is and the what the implications of leaving it are at the moment, and I confess to getting some of it wrong myself. The media and many politicians however, continue to make the same mistakes. Richard North's monograph on the subject is a great place to start for those who are understandably still a bit unsure.
alex.davies@gmchamber.co.uk
@GMCC_Alex