May’s office discloses Brexit plan
Cabinet to meet on future trade ties with the EU
LONDON — British Prime Minister Theresa May’s office disclosed details Thursday of a plan for customs ties with the European Union that she hopes will unite warring pro-brexit and pro-eu factions of her Conservative government.
Whether it will get the approval of the bloc is another matter.
May’s Cabinet is due to meet Friday at Chequers, the prime minister’s country retreat, in hopes of finally agreeing on a plan for future trade ties that Britain can put to the EU. With just nine months to go until the U.K. leaves the bloc in March, EU leaders have warned Britain that they must present detailed plans soon or risk crashing out without a trade deal.
That prospect alarms manufacturers and other businesses, who warn that they could abandon Britain if the EU and the U.K. cannot strike a deal.
Carmaker Jaguar Land Rover warned Thursday it would reconsider $106 billion of investment in the U.K. if the government failed to negotiate a deal that protects free trade with the EU.
“We urgently need greater certainty to continue to invest heavily in the U.K. and safeguard our suppliers, customers, and 40,000 British-based employees,” Chief Executive Ralf Speth said.
His comments follow similar warnings from BMW and Airbus.
May’s Cabinet is split between pro-eu ministers, including Treasury chief Philip Hammond, who want to retain close economic ties with the bloc and its market of 500 million people, and pro-brexit lawmakers such as Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson, who want a clean break so Britain can strike new trade deals around the world.
A powerful group of pro-brexit Conservative lawmakers have warned May she could be toppled by her own party if she opts for a compromise Brexit that keeps Britain closely aligned to EU rules.
One of the thorniest issues concerns the border between Britain’s Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland — the U.K.’S only land frontier with an EU member.