It’s too late, UK has already left the EU

I was surprised to read the letter by Anthony Pearson (“We’ve still got time to change our minds”, November 5) because reality is rather different.

The 2016 referendum was technically only advisory, but in agreeing to the hold referendum David Cameron said the Government would abide by the outcome, and that created a “legitimate expectation” argument that could have been taken to court. It wasn’t necessary, though, because Theresa May promised to deliver what the referendum had decided.

This process was thwarted by the remainer MPS in Parliament, and it wasn’t until the general election when Boris Johnson gained a significant majority in Parliament that progress was made. The European Union (Withdrawal Agreement) Act 2020 was given Royal Assent in January 2020, and that is when the UK left the EU. What we are in now is the “implementation period”, which the Act defines as the interval between Royal Approval and December 31, 2020 at 11pm. The Act specifically states that this date cannot be extended.

The implementation period was supposed to be the time when in exchange for the UK continuing to pay its contributions to the EU budget and complying with EU customs regulations the UK would continue to benefit from the EU’S free movement of goods arrangements. It was also the time when the future trading arrangements and other interface arrangements between the EU and the UK would be agreed, or not.

Because the UK has already left the EU and has no legal elbow room to extend the implementation period, it clearly is too late to change our mind.

JF Warren

Bath