Category Archives: Uncategorised

A post summer update

Posted on 9th September 2021 by admin

The past month or so has been relatively quiet in the world of the WA/TCA: the British proposals in its Command Paper had sat, largely uncommented, since late May as more prosaic matters have swirled. However, as Brussels and Westminster have … Continue reading →

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Legal options for changing the Northern Ireland Protocol

Posted on 28th July 2021 by admin

As a parting gift before a summer break, I’ve pulled together the various legal pathways currently available to changing the Protocol. This is based on the text of the Protocol/Withdrawal Agreement itself, plus a bit of customary international law, and … Continue reading →

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tl;dr – The UK’s Command Paper on the Northern Ireland Protocol

Posted on 21st July 2021 by admin

The publication on 21 July of the UK government’s Command Paper came just before the end of the Parliamentary session. Flagged for several weeks, it was presented as the culmination of a long push to secure changes to the Northern … Continue reading →

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Financial Settlement News

Posted on 15th July 2021 by admin

Perhaps the most striking thing about the breaking of the story about the unexpectedly large size of the UK’s financial liabilities under the Withdrawal Agreement last week was that it generated so little attention. The consolidated EU accounts for 2020 … Continue reading →

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Meetings and the TCA/WA

Posted on 8th July 2021 by admin

One aspect of the WA/TCA pairing that will generally never get much attention is the meeting roster. Both treaties provide not only for a coordinating body – the Joint Committee (WA) and the Partnership Council (TCA) – but also a … Continue reading →

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Further grace periods

Posted on 1st July 2021 by admin

The past week has seen two important grace periods extended. These periods have been used in both the TCA and WA to allow the UK and EU enough time to make necessary preparations for full implementation, or that is at … Continue reading →

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Five years of (some of) Brexit

Posted on 23rd June 2021 by admin

For me, it was the morning after that I remember most vividly. An early train to London left me wandering into Parliament Square at too-early-o’clock to hunt down the Radio5Live tent on College Green, to sit with Adrian Chiles for … Continue reading →

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Citizens’ rights under the Withdrawal Agreement

Posted on 16th June 2021 by admin

Citizens’ rights has been a rather strange part of the Brexit process, in that it has never occupied a very prominent place in the negotiations or discussions, even though it contains huge potential for disruption and problems. Whereas the financial … Continue reading →

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Pathways for the Northern Ireland Protocol

Posted on 10th June 2021 by admin

With the first meeting of the TCA’s Partnership Council finally done, alongside the WA’s Joint Committee, it’s perhaps a good time to reflect a bit on the Northern Ireland Protocol. While this sits within the Withdrawal Agreement, it’s worth noting … Continue reading →

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A bit of trade and not much cooperation: The hard Brexit deal

Posted on 3rd June 2021 by admin

This is a draft version of a piece published in Political Insight. Please refer to that version for any citations. Even before Covid, it was evident that 2020 was going to be a difficult one for British politics. The December 2019 … Continue reading →

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