Hogan: Dangerous to think Brexit is sorted
EU Trade Commissioner Phil Hogan has warned that it is “dangerous to think that Brexit is sorted.”
Some in the UK may see Brexit as a cause for celebration, but in the Commission, there was regret that it was happening.
Mr Hogan told RTÉ radio’s Today with Séan O’Rourke show that he was “delighted” that there was now a British government with a majority as for the past two years “they did not know what to do.”
"Things have changed and the penny may have dropped, but key issues still remain to be negotiated," he added.
The EU provides a market of 450 million for the UK and they will want a ‘benign’ trading relationship, however, there had been ‘contradictory’ messages from various UK ministers.
"The more divergence there is between the UK and the EU, the more difficult it will be for British industry," he warned. “If they don’t make a deal they will have to crash out.”
That will create a lot of red tape and make it difficult for competitiveness.
“That will not be good for either side.”
Mr Hogan said that UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson had signed the agreement and the protocol was clear about what the UK will have to do which will involve a system of checks on goods.
“There won’t be a blind eye turned to this. It is now legal. Boris Johnson was the person who negotiated this. Goods will have to be properly checked.”
The EU wants the best possible alignment with the UK, but Mr Hogan said the UK will not be able to come to a trade deal with the US until after EU/US negotiations are completed.
