LONDON • British lawmakers have approved Prime Minister Boris Johnson's post-Brexit trade deal with the European Union, as both sides looked to begin a new chapter of relations just days before their divorce becomes a reality.
Britain and the EU signed the deal yesterday and the British Parliament will finalise its implementation, ending over four years of negotiations and safeguarding nearly US$1 trillion (S$1.3 trillion) of annual trade.
Both sides said it was a chance to begin a new chapter in a relationship forged as Europe rebuilt after World War II, but which has often seen Britain as a reluctant participant in ever-tighter political and economic integration.
Mr Johnson, in a specially convened sitting of Parliament, said he hoped to work "hand in glove" with the EU when its interests aligned, using Britain's new-found sovereignty to reshape the British economy.
"Brexit is not an end but a beginning," he said. "The responsibility now rests with all of us to make the best use of the powers that we regain, the tools that we've taken back into our hands."
Parliament's Lower House voted 521 to 73 in favour of the deal. The Upper House of Parliament debated the Bill and it should become law around midnight local time.
The deal has been criticised on several fronts since it was agreed on Dec 24.
The opposition Labour Party says it is too thin and does not protect trade in services, fishermen rage that Mr Johnson has sold out their interests, and Northern Ireland's status remains subject to much uncertainty.
Failure to endorse the deal would have risked the return of costly tariffs on trade and severe disruption to supply chains.
The agreement removes Britain from the constraints of EU competition and state aid laws, meaning it can choose to invest and boost industries wherever it likes, Mr Johnson said.
It also gives Britain control over its fishing waters, immigration policy and lawmaking, and provides "certainty" to airlines and haulers that have been hit by the coronavirus pandemic, he added.
The Scottish National Party has attacked the agreement, saying it would harm Scotland's fishing industry, and told Mr Johnson it would bolster the case for independence.
Former prime minister Theresa May, who resigned in July last year after failing to secure parliamentary backing for her Brexit plans, also welcomed the deal.
However, she said she was disappointed at the lack of provision for the service sector, which makes up 80 per cent of Britain's economy, and the City of London financial district.
"We have a deal in trade which benefits the EU, but not one in services that would have benefited the UK," Mrs May said.
She highlighted the extra bureaucracy professionals will face when trying to sell their services in the bloc.
For England's fishermen, the Brexit trade deal is a betrayal because it allows some EU boats continued access to Britain's rich inshore coastal waters.
In Newlyn, an ancient Cornish fishing port, there is anger that Mr Johnson has let EU boats continue plying the rich six to 12 nautical mile inshore fishing zone.
"Boris the betrayer has slayed us and we won't forget," Mr Phil Mitchell, the 51-year-old skipper of the 23m Govenek of Ladram, told Reuters. "We had the opportunity to actually take back control and we've passed it up."
Excluding foreign vessels from the six to 12 mile limit was a "red line" for fishermen as the coastal area is considered a nursery, both for fish and for fishermen learning the trade.
After both sides have signed, the deal will be in place until the end of February, pending final approval by the European Parliament to make it permanent.
BLOOMBERG, REUTERS
