Brexit This, Brexit That: What's Going On In The UK

Explaining the current situation with "Brexit".

On the surface, the situation surrounding "Brexit" (the United Kingdom's exit from the European Union) looks like a pretty simple affair; at least it did to this American observer.  It's all about the people's desire to leave the EU, right? Well, not quite; there's a lot more to this issue than meets the eye.  Allow me to try to clarify what's going on.  

In 2016, the voters of the UK voted, via referendum, to leave the European Union.  This will formally happen on March 29th, 2019.  Thus, whether the UK leaves the EU or not is not at issue; the current debate is more about HOW the Brits will leave.  

The government of Prime Minister Theresa May has drafted a "Withdrawal Agreement" that specifies under what conditions the UK will depart from the EU.  Among other things, one of the key issues is a trade agreement between Northern Ireland (a province of the UK) and the Republic of Ireland, who share common borders.  

According to the 1998 "Good Friday Agreement" between the UK and Ireland (this was the document that brought relative peace to Ireland), there's no guarded border (or security checkpoints) between the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland.  At the moment, this means that goods and people can easily move from country to country.  The Republic's leaders want a written guarantee from the UK that, trade-wise, this arrangement will continue.  Any such agreement would result in a "hard" border, which could include the return of checkpoints.  

Another option that could be approved is the prime minister-supported "no border" arrangement.  However, there are major problems with this choice, including a possible new rift with the government of Ireland.  As such, leaders on the prime minister's side have offered a compromise; an agreement to continue the current trade arrangement, but not include border checkpoints.  This option is called the "backstop" agreement, and is part of the current deal.  

Now, here is the most complex part  The proposed Withdrawal Agreement is currently being debated in British Parliament, where it is struggling to gain support.  If the members of Parliament (known as "MPs", which stands for "Ministers of Parliament") vote down the Agreement, it would be a bit uncertain as to what would happen next.  The MPs could amend the Agreement, or possibly draw up a brand new one.  On the other hand, Parliament could decide to put the question to British voters, via referendum.  Still another option would be to refuse to approve any sort of Agreement.  This would mean that although the UK would still leave the EU (it will happen in any case), there would be no set arrangement for what would happen in the period between now and the formal withdrawal date (March 29th, 2019). 

Having described the current scene regarding "Brexit", I'll say this; it is obvious that Britain's leaders have an important call to make.  Their decision will not only effect their own people, but many others as well, including Americans and the Irish.  Indeed, most of Europe will be watching this debate with baited breath.  I hope that whatever decision is made proves to be the correct choice.  

Reviews

[Chris Shaw]

What is important is that the result of the referendum is honoured. That means in my opinion the only issue is how the UK leaves. With an agreement or without an agreement. Problem we have here is that too many MP's think they know best and don't really want to leave at all. They are putting their own personal views first rather than supporting the result of the referendum. 17.4 million people voted to leave. That is the highest number of votes in our history. To ignore that would inflict a huge damage to the meaning of democracy.