On Wednesday 28 April, the European Parliament approved, unsurprisingly, by a very large majority the Trade and Cooperation Agreement signed by the EU with the United Kingdom, which provisionally entered into force on 1 January.
MEPs had debated it at length the day before and finally gave the green light - by 660 votes to 5 with 32 abstentions - to this agreement organising trade, fisheries and internal security relations between the two parties.
They also approved a resolution on the subject by 578 votes to 51 with 68 abstentions. The written procedure for the final adoption of the agreement will be launched on 29 April in the EU Council.
Leading politicians welcomed the vote, which marks the end of ‘Brexit’ that began in 2016. European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and European Council President Charles Michel were quick to welcome the vote, which marks “a major milestone in EU-UK relations and opens a new era”, commented Mr Michel. The EU will continue to work “constructively with the UK as an important friend and partner”, he added. The implementation “in good faith of this agreement is essential”, stressed Mrs von der Leyen.
Boris Johnson, the British Prime Minister, also welcomed “this final step in a long journey” and said that the ratification of the agreement by Parliament would bring “stability” to relations between the two parties. For David Frost, the UK negotiator, the certainty brought by this vote will “allow us to focus on the future”.
However, some MEPs abstained, including Renew Europe’s Pascal Canfin, Pascal Durand, and Catherine Chabaud. Some Greens/EFA MEPs also made this choice, such as French MEPs Gwendoline Delbos-Corfield and Marie Toussaint, the former having explained that the agreement did not seem to be sufficient on the issue of personal data protection in her view, especially regarding transfers with the UK.
Link to the resolution: https://bit.ly/3tVOzfw (Original version in French by Solenn Paulic)