LONDON • Prime Minister Boris Johnson declared his plan to make Britain "a science superpower" after Brexit, as the clock ticked down to the moment the country finally parted from the European Union's single market and Customs rules on New Year's Day.
Britain completed its divorce from the EU on Jan 1, more than four years after the country voted for Brexit.
The end of the transition period at 11pm on Thursday in London launched Britain on a new path on its own, free from EU laws, able to strike trade agreements with other countries around the world, and to reshape its economy at home.
In his New Year message, Mr Johnson said he wants to use the new opportunities Brexit provides to pioneer developments in biosciences, artificial intelligence and battery and wind power technology, and create millions of high-skilled jobs.
"This is an amazing moment for this country," Mr Johnson said in a statement from his office. "We have our freedom in our hands and it is up to us to make the most of it."
But much remains unknown about what that future will look like after Britain's five decades in the bloc. There are also questions over how Britain will choose to use its new-found independence from the EU, given the threat of tariffs from the bloc if Britain distorts fair conditions for businesses.
A new trade accord now governs commerce between Britain and the EU, but adds red tape for companies and significantly limits the ability of British businesses to offer services across the bloc.
Doubts are also cast on whether London or Brussels will look to rewrite the terms of the trade agreement, as the accord explicitly allows, or if Mr Johnson's government will be able to secure a vital agreement on financial services, a key part of the British economy.
In the immediate term, practical challenges abound.
Mr Johnson's government had been bracing itself for disruption at the Britain-EU border this month due to companies not being ready to comply with new red tape. Officials fear queues of trucks will be backed up for miles if businesses do not have the right forms, creating chaos that could disrupt vital supplies of food, chemicals and medicines.
Dispelling worries of a repeat of last month's snarl-ups as Brexit took effect, scores of heavy goods vehicles early yesterday passed through the Channel Tunnel connecting Britain and France "without any problem", operator Getlink said, adding that almost 200 lorries crossed into France and left the country for Britain.
There were immense bottlenecks of traffic after France briefly closed the border late less month when a new coronavirus variant was found in Britain. But with all drivers coming in now taking tests before entering France, the backlog was cleared just in time for the completion of Brexit.
Some 70 per cent of trade between Britain and the EU passes through the French ports of Calais and Dunkirk. On average, 60,000 passengers and 12,000 trucks pass through daily.
In his New Year's address to the nation, French President Emmanuel Macron reiterated his view that Britain's decision to leave the EU was the fruit of "a lot of lies and false promises", but added that Britain would remain "our friend and ally".
In the months ahead, Mr Johnson's government has a more pressing emergency - racing to roll out vaccines fast enough to roll back the spread of the coronavirus.
"We know that we have a hard struggle still ahead of us for weeks and months, because we face a new variant of the disease that requires a new vigilance," he said.
"But as the sun rises tomorrow on 2021, we have the certainty of those vaccines, pioneered in a UK that is also free to do things differently and, if necessary, better than our friends in the EU."
BLOOMBERG, AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSE
