BY JOHN BRUTON  Brexit, of its nature, means hard barriers between the UK and the EU. This is because it means the UK having different standards, and, sooner or later, different trade arrangements and tariffs than the EU.   Whether these barriers are at the geographic boundary, or a few miles away, makes little difference. These new barriers will bring delays, extra bureaucracy, and eventually bankruptcies, in their wake.This is what Brexit means, and was always going to mean. Taking back control, by its...

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In the debate following the UK House of Commons’ meaningful vote, MEPs underlined that Europeans will remain united and that citizens’ rights are still the EP’s priority. Following the rejection of the Withdrawal Agreement and the Political Declaration in the UK’s House of Commons yesterday evening, it is now up to the UK government and UK Parliament to let the EU know where a positive majority lies and what type of relationship they want with the European Union, MEPs stressed. The...

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Commission launches debate on a gradual transition to more efficient and democratic decision-making in EU tax policy EU tax policy The Commission has today kick-started the debate on reforming decision-making for areas of EU taxation policy, which currently requires unanimity among Member States. This unanimity often cannot be achieved on crucial tax initiatives, and can lead to costly delays on sub-optimal policies. The Communication published today suggests a roadmap for a progressive and targeted transition to qualified majority voting under the ordinary legislative...

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Strasbourg, 16 January 2019 By Frans Timmermans & Michel Barnier First Vice-President Frans Timmermans Thank you very much, Mr President. The vote last night in the House of Commons was crystal clear. The Withdrawal Agreement has been rejected. And now we will have to look for a way forward. The Commission regrets the rejection of the Withdrawal Agreement, as the representative of the Council said, because we do believe this was the best possible outcome. In a situation where two parties were negotiating, looking after their...

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