Thousands of businesses have suffered material harm as a result of sharp practice against which they have no recourse.
They propose a bespoke agreement that would permit mutual market access, with a Solvency II equivalence outcome built into it.
I understand the Government’s keenness to achieve a free trade agreement with the EU, but we need to be careful that the price is not too high.
Britain and the EU are as well-placed as any two parties could be to strike a comprehensive agreement which covers this critical industry.
In a no-deal scenario, we must be prepared with a detailed plan which takes into account the trading and regulatory differences between industries.
I would propose that we pay a total of €12 billion as our “divorce bill” – even if there’s no FTA. But subject to three conditions.
“The language should be that of giving people their chance to succeed and of being on their side – a “people politics” that many practice locally but which must be scaled up.”
A combination of work permits and a cap would provide proper control, while still allowing flexibility where it is required.
Vulnerable customers need to be safeguarded. Regular sessions using price comparison sites in local libraries would help.
The third in a three-part series of contributions from the ‘New Blue Book’.
Nor will the eventual separation from the EU see a sudden break. Rather, this will be a gradual and partial divergence.
EURATOM, WTO quotas, open skies agreements, banks’ ability to lend – all these involve change which it may not be possible to effect by April 2019.
Much of the concern is over-hyped – not least because these specialised, highly skilled people don’t want to leave London in the first place.
My own analysis proposes ‘equivalence’, and outlines a model UK-EU agreement based on enhancements to the existing EU notion of it.