Britain’s limited options

On the face of it, the EU’s deals with Canada, Liechtenstein, Norway and Switzerland appear to lack an underlying principle. Brexiteers have seized on the discrepancies between them, in order to argue that Britain can stay in the single market while imposing quotas on the number of immigrants from the EU. But there is a logic that explains why they are different – and it suggests that the UK is heading for a harder Brexit than many in Britain appear to realise.

• Primary Source

ESO: Background information: The Brexit Scenarios: Towards a New UK-EU Relationship http://www.europeansources.info/record/the-brexit-scenarios-towards-a-new-uk-eu-relationship/

ESO: Background information: The process of withdrawing from the European Union http://www.europeansources.info/record/the-process-of-withdrawing-from-the-european-union/

ESO: Background Information: Theresa May has two clear options on Brexit – neither of them easy http://www.europeansources.info/record/theresa-may-has-two-clear-options-on-brexit-neither-of-them-easy/

Open Europe: Blog, 21.09.16: Would a Swiss-EU compromise on free movement appeal to Britain? http://openeurope.org.uk/today/blog/swiss-eu-compromise-free-movement/

The Independent, 09.09.16: Switzerland offers UK Brexit solution to prevent EU 'explosion' over free movement http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/europe/switzerland-uk-brexit-solution-trade-deal-free-movement-micheline-calmy-rey-a7234906.html

The Wall Street Journal, 24.06.16: After ‘Brexit’: Can the U.K. Become More Like Switzerland? http://www.wsj.com/articles/after-brexit-can-the-u-k-become-more-like-switzerland-1466774144

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