Brexit and its Aftermath

as well as by prominent practitioners and policymakers (Minister Hands). A chapter could have been added on the Commonwealth and Britain's imperial past, yet it should not be overstated, because the Commonwealth will not compensate for the membership of the EU. An attraction of Brexit was that it allowed Great Britain to have close bilateral and commercial relations with certain Commonwealth partners, notably Australia and New Zealand. Recently there have been some spats on the implementation of the Trade and Cooperation Agreement. There is tension between the UK government and EU over the Northern Ireland Protocol. Cooperation between the UK and the EU is under severe strain. What will the new relationship between the UK and the EU be like? Should defence and security links with continental European countries be strengthened, given the enhanced terrorist threat and the withdrawal of the United States from Afghanistan? The book is addressed not only to students in politics or international relations but to a wider audience who are concerned about the upheaval that Brexit represents for British politics, the financial services and Britain's place in the world. Half Title 2 Title Page 4 Copyright Page 5 Contents 6 Preface 7 Contributors 9 Introduction 12 Part 1: Brexit, Political Parties, the British Constitution and the Union 22 Chapter 1: Brexit and the British Constitution 24 Parliamentary sovereignty 24 Direct and representative democracy 28 Contiguous issues 33 Trends in the party system, in particular tensions within the Conservatives and Labour 33 Elections 34 ‘Populism’ 35 Social divisions 35 Online politics 36 Geography 36 Chapter 2: Brexit’s impact on the party system 39 British party politics and Brexit, June 2016–December 2020 40 June 2016–17 41 The Brexit election? The general election of 2017 42 Party politics pushed to the Brexit extremes, June 2017–December 2018 43 Multiparty politics: January–September 2018 45 Prime Minister Johnson and a Brexit election 47 The Brexit effect on the UK party system 48 The UK’s changing electoral coalitions 49 Conservative and Labour party members 49 The Parliamentary Conservative and Labour parties 50 Chapter 3: Brexit and Scotland: Unfinished business? 53 Introduction 53 Brexit begins to matter 55 The 2017 election 56 Support for independence rises 58 Brexit and devolution 60 The pandemic 61 The 2021 election 63 Scotland’s new choice 65 Conclusion 65 Acknowledgement 66 Chapter 4: On the borders of contention: Brexit’s physical and psychological impact on Britain’s border with Ireland 68 Introduction and contextualization 68 Research study and methodology 71 Blurred boundaries at the outset 73 The shadows of gun people in Irish history 74 The opening up of a territorial Pandora’s box 77 Getting Brexit done and getting on with life along the border 79 Conclusion and recommendations on the basis of this study 82 Chapter 5: The impact of Brexit on the future of the UK’s financial services 87 What accounts for the growth of the UK’s financial services industry? 89 A wide range of financial services activity 93 The impact of Brexit negotiations on financial services 96 The impact of the Christmas Eve 2020 agreement 104 The short-term impact of Brexit on UK’s financial services 106 Medium-term impact of Brexit and other factors on London as the global financial centre 118 Conclusion: Future competition in financial services between the UK, Europe and other world centres 120 Part 2: The UK and the World 126 Chapter 6: The future of British trade policy 128 Setting the scene 128 An independent trade policy 130 HM government’s ambitions on trade policy 131 Global trade priorities 132 Multilateral reform 133 The UK Global Tariff (UKGT) 134 Continuity agreements 135 New FTA negotiations 137 Conclusion 139 Chapter 7: Brexit and the ‘special relationship’ 140 So much for the ‘specially close’ relationship as it has existed until now. Re Brexit, how did we get to the position we are now in? 143 What then will be the effect on Britain’s relationship with the United States? 152 So, apart from the obvious loss of British influence in Europe, what else especially risks being lost post Brexit? 155 Chapter 8: Choppy waters: The future of the Entente Cordiale after Brexit 163 The origins of the Entente Cordiale: From an informal relationship to a diplomatic alliance 166 Monnet’s supranationalism and Britain’s refusal to join a customs union 172 De Gaulle’s reluctance towards the UK and his veto to its membership of the EU in 1963 and 1967 174 The impact of Brexit on the Entente Cordiale 182 Conclusion 186 Chapter 9: Brexit and the German position 189 Introduction 189 Early warning signs 190 The loss of a strategic partner 195 Prospects 198 The UK after Brexit 198 Brexit as a negotiation process 199 Defence cooperation 200 A kind of conclusion 201 Epilogue 202 Books 204 Reports and articles 204 Chapter 10: The new relationship between the EU and the UK 205 The four pillars of the trade deal 206 A free trade agreement without tariffs or quotas 207 An economic and social partnership, the fight against climate change, non-discrimination 208 The security of citizens : The fight against terrorism and organized crime 208 Customs checks 208 ‘What we call the beginning is often the end and to make an end is to make a beginning’ (T. S. Eliot) 209 The impact of the trade agreement on the UK and the EU 211 The impact on the UK 212 Zero tariffs and zero quotas to the EU 212 National independence 213 Control of British laws 214 The Northern Ireland question 216 Gibraltar 219 The Lugano Convention 220 The impact on the EU 220 Conclusion 221 Index 224 "The British referendum on the membership of the European Union on 23 June 2016 was a cataclysmic event in British and European politics. Years later the consequences are still unknown. This collection seeks to answer the key questions relating to the consequences of Brexit and the future of Britain. Will Brexit affect the British constitution? Is Brexit likely to lead to the breakup of the UK - with Scotland and Northern Ireland seeking independence? How will Covid-19 delay lingering political questions brought on by Brexit? These key questions and more, relating to both domestic and foreign policy, are answered by a range of contributors including expert academics, policy-makers and Members of Parliament and addresses both European and British policy-making"-- Provided by publisher.