Businesses are urging Prime Minister Boris Johnson to begin negotiations on the terms of the UK’s future relationships with the European Union (EU) after Brexit.
Following the Conservative victory in the election, businesses are urging the Prime Minister to follow up on his promise to ‘get Brexit done’ by ensuring the avoidance of a no-deal exit.
This follows concerns that the UK could get rid of the EU’s trade agreements with the rest of the world before writing their own.
The president of the European Council, Charles Michel, has indicated that the EU is willing to begin negotiating with Mr Johnson.
In a tweet, congratulating the Prime Minister on his election win, Mr Michel said: “We will negotiate a future trade deal which ensures a true level playing field.”
Jonathan Geldart, Director General of the Institute of Directors said: “As the outcome of the election became clear, the thoughts of business leaders would have immediately turned to Brexit.
For directors, ‘get Brexit done’ will only have meaning once the details of our long-term future relationship with the EU are clear. They need a framework to plan for the future from,
“The prime minister must resist the urge for arbitrary negotiating deadlines and should commit to a proper adjustment period that starts when businesses know the full detail of what changes they may be facing.”
A similar sentiment was made by Stephen Phipson, Chief Executive of manufacturers’ organisation Make UK.
He said: “The first job is the urgent need to begin negotiations on our future trading relationship with Europe, cementing frictionless trade, access to key skills, regulatory alignment and space for business to prepare for new arrangements.
“Manufacturing exports are one of the powerhouses of our economy and we must allow them to flourish.”
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