Signing brings Brexit closer Britain
Boris Johnson has heralded the end of ‘‘years of argument and division’’ as he signed the Brexit Withdrawal Agreement ahead of Britain’s departure from the European Union next week.
The British prime minister said the United Kingdom could now ‘‘move forward as one country’’ after he put his signature to the document yesterday.
Earlier in the day, the presidents of the European Council, Charles Michel, and the European Commission, Ursula von der Leyen, formally signed the agreement in Brussels.
The Queen gave royal assent to the legislation on Friday after the legislation cleared both Houses of Parliament.
‘‘The signing of the Withdrawal Agreement is a fantastic moment, which finally delivers the result of the 2016 referendum and brings to an end far too many years of argument and division,’’ Johnson said.
He signed the document in an anteroom outside the Cabinet Room at No 10 Downing Street, witnessed by EU and Foreign Office officials who transported the treaty from Brussels.
The European Parliament is now expected to vote to approve the agreement on Thursday, after its influential constitutional affairs committee voted in favour by a large margin last week, paving the way for the UK to leave the EU on January 31.
It will mark the start of an 11-month transition period, during which the UK will continue to follow EU rules, before the final break with Brussels at the end of the year.
Johnson has said he wants to negotiate a comprehensive free trade deal with the EU by the end of the year. However, von der Leyen and other senior EU figures have warned that his government’s stated intention to end the UK’s alignment with EU regulations means a deal will be impossible to achieve within such a tight timetable.
In a June 2016 referendum, British voters narrowly opted to leave the EU. It will be the first time a member state has left the world’s biggest trading bloc.
‘‘Things will inevitably change but our friendship will remain. We start a new chapter as partners and allies,’’ Michel tweeted after the signing ceremony, in reference to ties with Britain, adding: ‘‘I can’t wait to write this new page together.’’