Breaking: EU takes Legal Action over UK Brexit Divorce

The EU Commission has launched legal action against the UK for breaking the Brexit treaty and the divorce is getting messy!

The European Commission had launched legal proceedings against the UK over the UK government’s plan to break an agreed Brexit withdrawal agreement. The European Commission confirmed that it will send a “letter of formal notice” to the UK for breaching the terms of its withdrawal agreement with the European Union – the UK now has one month to reply.

Boris Johnson had signed the treaty at the start of the year, but the government now says it will pass legislation that could override part of what was agreed – breaking international law. Commission president Ursula von der Leyen said in a statement in Brussels on Thursday that “infringement” proceedings would begin immediately, starting with a formal notice asking for the UK to provide a complete explanation.

“We had invited our British friends to remove the problematic parts of their draft internal market bill by the end of September. This draft bill is, by its very nature, a breach of the obligation of good faith laid down in the Withdrawal Agreement. Moreover, if adopted as is it will be in full contradiction of the protocol on Ireland/Northern Ireland. The deadline lapsed yesterday, the problematic provisions have not been removed,” she said.

The UK Government has signalled it could tear up elements of the package relating to Northern Ireland in the UK Internal Market Bill, which cleared the Commons this week.
But ministers have admitted that the plan would breach international law – sending shockwaves through the UK’s negotiations with Brussels.

Britain has signed a landmark deal on fisheries, marking the first of its kind since the UK left the EU in January.

UK fishermen are incredibly reliant on fish from the North Sea, and according to government figures from 2017, the waters were the most profitable catchment area for fishermen. The Agreement on fisheries between the EU and Norway is still in effect and includes the management of stocks, access and exchange arrangements.

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