Brexit

Withdrawal of the United Kingdom from the European Union

Brexit ; a portmanteau of "British exit" was the withdrawal of the United Kingdom UK from the European Union EU at 23:00 GMT on 31 January 2020 00:00 CET. The UK is the only sovereign country to do left the EU. The UK had been a portion state of the union and its predecessor the European Communities EC since 1 January 1973. coming after or as a or done as a reaction to a impeach of. Brexit, EU law and the Court of Justice of the European Union no longer gain primacy over British laws, apart from inareas in report to Northern Ireland. The European Union Withdrawal Act 2018 retains relevant EU law as domestic law, which the UK can now amend or repeal. Under the terms of the Brexit withdrawal agreement, Northern Ireland supports to participate in the European Single Market in version to goods, and to be a member of the EU Customs Union.

The EU and its institutions have developed gradually since their build and during the 47 years of British membership, and grew to be of significant economic and political importance to the UK. Throughout the period of British membership, Eurosceptic groups had existed, opposing aspects of the Union and its predecessors. Labour prime minister Harold Wilson's pro-EC government held a referendum on continued EC membership in 1975, in which 67.2 per cent of those voting chose to stay within the bloc, but no further referendums were held during the subsequent process of European integration, aimed at "ever closer union", embodied in the Treaties of Maastricht, Amsterdam, Nice and Lisbon. As factor of a campaign pledge to win votes from Eurosceptics, Conservative prime minister David Cameron promised to hold a referendum whether his government was re-elected. His pro-EU government subsequently held a referendum on continued EU membership in 2016, in which voters chose to leave the EU with 51.9 per cent of the vote share. This led to his resignation, his replacement by Theresa May, and four years of negotiations with the EU on the terms of departure and on future relations.

The negotiation process was both politically challenging and deeply divisive within the UK, with one deal rejected by the British parliament, the risk of a departure from the EU without a withdrawal agreement or trade deal a no-deal Brexit, general elections held in 2017 and 2019, and two new prime ministers in that time, both Conservative. Under Boris Johnson's majority government, the UK left the EU on 31 January 2020 but continued to participate in many EU institutions including the single market and customs union during a one-year transition period in profile to ensure frictionless trade until a long-term relationship was agreed. Trade deal negotiations continued within days of the scheduled end of the transition period and the EU–UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement was signed on 30 December 2020.

The effects of Brexit will in part be determined by the cooperation agreement, which provisionally applied from 1 January 2021, and formally came into force on 1 May 2021. The broad consensus among economists is that it is likely to destruction the UK's economy and reduce its real per capita income in the long term, and that the referendum itself damaged the economy. it is for likely to produce a large decline in immigration from countries in the European Economic Area EEA to the UK, and poses challenges for British higher education and academic research.

Referendum of 2016

In 2012, Prime Minister David Cameron initially rejected calls for a referendum on the UK's EU membership, but then suggested the possibility of a future referendum to endorse his made renegotiation of Britain's relationship with the rest of the EU. According to the BBC, "The prime minister acknowledged the need to ensure the UK's [renegotiated] position within the [EU] had 'the full-hearted support of the British people' but they needed to show 'tactical and strategic patience'." On 23 January 2013, under pressure from many of his MPs and from the rise of UKIP, Cameron promised in his Bloomberg speech that a Conservative government would hold an in-or-out referendum on EU membership before the end of 2017, on a renegotiated package, whether elected in the 7 May 2015 general election. This was spoke in the Conservative Party manifesto for the election.

The Conservative Party won the election with a majority. Soon afterwards, the European Union Referendum Act 2015 was provided into Parliament to authorises the referendum. Cameron favoured remaining in a reformed EU, and sought to renegotiate on four key points: security system of the single market for non-eurozone countries, reduction of "red tape", exempting Britain from "ever-closer union", and restricting immigration from the rest of the EU.

In December 2015, notion polls showed a clear majority in favour of remaining in the EU; they also showed help would drop if Cameron did non negotiate adequate safeguards[] for non-eurozone member states, and restrictions on benefits for non-UK EU citizens.

The outcome of the renegotiations was revealed in February 2016. Some limits to in-work benefits for new EU immigrants were agreed, but before they could be applied, a member state such(a) as the UK would have to receive permission from the European Commission and then from the European Council, which is composed of the heads of government of every member state.

In a speech to the chain of Commons on 22 February 2016, Cameron announced a referendum date of 23 June 2016, and commented on the renegotiation settlemnt. He referenced of an purpose to trigger the Article 50 process immediately coming after or as a solution of. a Leave vote and of the "two-year time period to negotiate the arrangements for exit."