Continuity in the availability of goods for the EU and the UK – position paper

Further information
The paper lay out the following UK positions:

The UK ambition was to seek an agreement with the EU which allowed the freest and most frictionless trade possible in goods and services, to the benefit of all. The paper outlined four key principles for ensuring a smooth and orderly withdrawal from the EU in regard to the availability of goods.

+ Firstly, the UK wanted to ensure that goods which are placed on the market before exit day can continue to be sold in the UK and EU, without any additional requirements or restrictions.
+ Secondly, the UK wanted to avoid unnecessary duplication of compliance activities that had been undertaken by businesses prior to exit. This meant that where products had gone through an authorisation process prior to exit, for example a type approval for a car, this approval should remain valid in both markets after exit.
+ Thirdly, the UK was clear that patient safety and consumer protection in the EU27 and UK were paramount, which meant that any agreement would need to facilitate the continued oversight of products to ensure the necessary action could be taken for non-compliant or unsafe goods.
+ Finally, the provision of goods and services was increasingly interconnected. Services are essential for production of goods, for their sale, distribution and delivery, and for their operation and repair. Where goods were supplied with services, the UK believed there should be no restriction to the provision of these services.

These four principles demonstrated that the UK was getting on with the job of negotiating. Taken together, they would prevent bureaucracy and unnecessary duplication of effort by business, or restricted supply of certain products to consumers, which might otherwise occur. But our position remained that the best way to address these risks was through discussions on a deep and special future partnership which enabled our close trading relationship to continue to flourish.The United Kingdom government issued on the 21 August 2017 the fourth of a series of papers putting forward its negotiating position on the UK’s future partnership with the European Union (EU). It was published in the context of the negotiations being undertaken with the EU for the UK to leave the union following the Brexit referendum vote of June 2016.

This paper outlined the United Kingdom's position on continuity in the availability of goods in UK and EU markets at the point of EU exit.

It was in the interests of both the UK and the EU to ensure a smooth and orderly withdrawal in regard to the availability of goods in the UK and EU markets.

The UK recognised that investors, businesses and citizens in the UK and across the EU wanted to be able to plan ahead with certainty, and this paper set out the desire to provide legal certainty and avoid disruption for business and consumers.

The EU exported goods worth €314 billion (around £257 billion) to the UK, more than to Brazil, Russia, India and China combined, which is why it was in no-one’s interest to see disruption and uncertainty.

• Primary Source

ESO: In Focus: Brexit - The United Kingdom and the European Union http://www.europeansources.info/record/brexit-the-united-kingdom-and-the-european-union/

BBC News, 21.08.17: Brexit: UK publishes more EU negotiation plans http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-40997985

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