So far negotiations have shown the EU holds most of the important cards. The UK caved in on any negotiation demand.
It’s a fascinating view from Germany:
The UK threatens “No Deal”, the EU informs companies that “No Deal” is a possible outcome and plans contingencies, informs companies that they should too, UK now complains that EU threatens companies.
UK says “Out means out”, EU prepares to move EU institutions abroad, UK complains about EU moving institutions abroad.
I’m also puzzled what’s supposed to happen with such important stuff as rules and agreements for importing nuclear materials for powerplants (currently regulated via Euratom), regulations regarding medicine/medical treatment (currently also handled on a european level) and all of that stuff.
Which other option does the UK realistically have for those things other than just accept the EU rules? Any producer for anything that wants to export to the EU will have to abide by EU rules anyways. Will there be a UK and a EU edition of things?
All of this could be solved with sufficient time, but triggering article 50 was akin to holding a loaded gun to your head and saying “if you don’t do what I want at the end of the next two years, I’ll pull the trigger.”
>Which other option does the UK realistically have for those things other than just accept the EU rules? //
I'm not sure if it was a main driver but the powers that are pushing this whole thing behind the scenes clearly have realised the opportunity to subtely rewrite a lot of regulations/legislation to prefer their interests.
The "sovereignty" part of Brexit is playing out as taking power from a more socialist and green EU and giving it to the hidden capitalist interests behind the Tories.
The incredible sleight-of-hand has been getting the working classes to vote for something that could then be twisted to be so highly detrimental to them.
Anyway, to your question about industry regulations: safety, food standards, and environmentalism costs money. Companies within the EU trading block will sell the stuff that meets the regulations, UK will get to have cheap stuff that breaks easily and no longer have the 2 year 'warranty', or the restrictions on unfair business practices - UK companies will try and foist our lower standards on whoever we can fool in to it, eg with promises of "foreign aid" that end up in developing world officials bank accounts. Bonus, the workers making the stuff will get paid less, have less job security, less rights.
Double bonus, UK environment will be open for capitalists to fuck up if they want to make a quick buck.
> I’m also puzzled what’s supposed to happen with such important stuff as rules and agreements for importing nuclear materials for powerplants (currently regulated via Euratom), regulations regarding medicine/medical treatment (currently also handled on a european level) and all of that stuff.
Obviously there are already emergency plans to set up massive bureaucracies to replace the european ones. Just like there are enormous customs stations being built at the channel tunnel, the construction of which started the day after the election.
Or it isn't.
Because in the end the sheer enormity of the task probably is too much to take in, and even the slightest risk that all of this will somehow "go away" or "be delayed" means politicians aren't really ready to start burying billions of pounds in these projects. And the deadlines creep ever closer.
This at least leads me to think that the outcome of theis "first brexit" negotiaion will be that the Brexit proper will happen in X years. The UK will keep paying nearly all of what it's paying PLUS costs to move EU things from Britain to the rest of europe. The bargaining space is the rebate the UK had before brexit, that is, the EU could possibly concede to let the UK "only" pay what it used to, and not significantly more.
It’s a fascinating view from Germany:
The UK threatens “No Deal”, the EU informs companies that “No Deal” is a possible outcome and plans contingencies, informs companies that they should too, UK now complains that EU threatens companies.
UK says “Out means out”, EU prepares to move EU institutions abroad, UK complains about EU moving institutions abroad.
I’m also puzzled what’s supposed to happen with such important stuff as rules and agreements for importing nuclear materials for powerplants (currently regulated via Euratom), regulations regarding medicine/medical treatment (currently also handled on a european level) and all of that stuff.
Which other option does the UK realistically have for those things other than just accept the EU rules? Any producer for anything that wants to export to the EU will have to abide by EU rules anyways. Will there be a UK and a EU edition of things?
All of this could be solved with sufficient time, but triggering article 50 was akin to holding a loaded gun to your head and saying “if you don’t do what I want at the end of the next two years, I’ll pull the trigger.”