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Bloomberg
UK PM Theresa May is asking the European Union for flexibility on the length of the Brexit transition period with just over a year before the country leaves the bloc.
The UK has said it wants an implementation period to last around two years, while the European Union has stipulated an end date of December 31, 2020. But the latest draft from the UK suggests an even longer bridging phase. That risks inflaming May’s already tense relations with Conservative euroskeptics.
“The UK believes the period’s duration should be determined simply by how long it will take to prepare and implement the new processes and new systems that will underpin the future partnership,†May’s government said in a draft legal document seen by Bloomberg.
“The UK agrees this points to a period of around two years, but wishes to discuss with the EU the assessment that supports its proposed end date,†according to the draft.
The legal text sets out the UK’s proposals for a transitional agreement to take effect after it leaves the EU in March 2019.
The idea of a transition phase is to smooth the UK’s path out of the bloc and give time for British and European businesses to adjust to the new arrangements.
Recently, a letter emerged from 62 Brexit-supporting Tory lawmakers to the prime minister in which they demanded restrictions on any transitional terms that May agrees on.