The negotiation of a UK-EU trade agreement: objective, process and possible outcomes

Abstract

The UK can’t have it all. Its proposal to maintain a deeply integrated trade and economic relationship with the EU alongside its rejection of the key obligations, institutions and enforcement mechanisms necessary for securing such degree of economic integration is inherently contradictory. If there is one thing certain about the final outcome of the negotiations for a post Brexit UK-EU trade agreement, is that the degree of market access that it will deliver will be lower than the current one. Against this background, this paper explores how the parties can use their treaty-making capacity wisely, taking advantage of the proximity, long-standing common values and European identity shared by them in order to design a second-best alternative that meets UK demands and, at the same time, is capable of delivering a degree of economic integration as closest as possible to current levels.