• Privacy policy
  • T&C’s
  • About Us
    • FAQ
    • Meet the Team
  • Contact us
  • Guest Content
TLE ONLINE SHOP!
  • TLE
  • News
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Sport
  • Opinion
  • Elevenses
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • Film
    • Lifestyle
      • Horoscopes
    • Lottery Results
      • Lotto
      • Thunderball
      • Set For Life
      • EuroMillions
  • Food
    • All Food
    • Recipes
  • Property
  • Travel
  • Tech/Auto
  • JOBS
No Result
View All Result
The London Economic
SUPPORT THE LONDON ECONOMIC
NEWSLETTER
  • TLE
  • News
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Sport
  • Opinion
  • Elevenses
  • Entertainment
    • All Entertainment
    • Film
    • Lifestyle
      • Horoscopes
    • Lottery Results
      • Lotto
      • Thunderball
      • Set For Life
      • EuroMillions
  • Food
    • All Food
    • Recipes
  • Property
  • Travel
  • Tech/Auto
  • JOBS
No Result
View All Result
The London Economic
No Result
View All Result
Home Politics

Brussels dismisses IDS calls for Brexit deal to be scrapped

Former Tory leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith said the deal means we are “hooked into the EU’s loan book”.

Henry Goodwin by Henry Goodwin
2020-08-04 13:16
in Politics
FacebookTwitterLinkedinEmailWhatsapp

The European Commission has rejected calls for the Brexit Withdrawal Agreement to be rewritten after senior Tories complained it could leave the UK liable for £160 billion of unpaid loans.

Former Tory leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith said the deal means we are “hooked into the EU’s loan book”.

To avoid their own budget black hole, the EU gets £39billion as a “divorce payment” from us, reflecting our share of the current EU budget. But it gets worse. Buried in the fine print, unnoticed by many, is the fact we remain hooked into the EU’s loan book. (2/3)

— Iain Duncan Smith MP (@MPIainDS) August 3, 2020

But Brussels said the commitments made in the Withdrawal Agreement – the divorce deal signed by Boris Johnson and the 27 EU members – are reasonable and will stand.

Sir Iain claimed that the UK’s liabilities go far beyond the £39 billion divorce deal – although the full scale of the financial implications will depend on defaults on loans made available through the European Investment Bank (EIB) and European Financial Stability Mechanism.

‘Withdrawal Agreement stands’

Commission spokesman Eric Mamer insisted that the Withdrawal Agreement is a “firm document” which is not going to be rewritten.

He said: “I think it’s very clear that we are not going to get into a debate with British politicians on liabilities or any other of the provisions of the Withdrawal Agreement.

“The Withdrawal Agreement is there, it is now a firm document that has been accepted by both parties and it is the basis on which both sides are acting.

“In this document it is clear that that the United Kingdom has taken a certain number of completely normal legal commitments when it comes to its share of liabilities related to loans that would have been given by the EIB whilst the UK was still a member of the European Union.”

He added: “What we can say is that the Withdrawal Agreement stands, that in it the United Kingdom has taken a certain number of perfectly reasonable commitments related to the time when it was still a member of the European Union relating to its share of liabilities on loans given out by the EIB, and we have nothing further to comment on this.”

RelatedPosts

Protesters break into House of Lords debate on protesting

Only one constituency out of 632 strongly agrees Britain was right to leave EU

Boris Johnson told ‘a lie’ over Putin missile attack claims, says Kremlin

Penny Mordaunt favourite to become Tory Chairman

Sir Iain claimed that the EU “want our money and they want to stop us being a competitor” and the Withdrawal Agreement “sadly helps them”.

He said the Withdrawal Agreement “costs too much”, “denies us true national independence” and “has to go”.

“Now Britain faces a £160 billion EU loans bill after Brexit,” he claimed.

‘Changes are inevitable’

Meanwhile, Michel Barnier, the EU’s chief negotiator with the UK, stepped up his calls for Europeans to prepare for the end of the transition period at the end of the year.

“Changes are inevitable, with or without agreement on the new partnership,” he said.

“Companies and citizens must get ready.”

Related: ‘More red tape’: Hauliers prepare for Brexit border in Kent

Since you are here

Since you are here, we wanted to ask for your help.

Journalism in Britain is under threat. The government is becoming increasingly authoritarian and our media is run by a handful of billionaires, most of whom reside overseas and all of them have strong political allegiances and financial motivations.

Our mission is to hold the powerful to account. It is vital that free media is allowed to exist to expose hypocrisy, corruption, wrongdoing and abuse of power. But we can't do it without you.

If you can afford to contribute a small donation to the site it will help us to continue our work in the best interests of the public. We only ask you to donate what you can afford, with an option to cancel your subscription at any point.

To donate or subscribe to The London Economic, click here.

The TLE shop is also now open, with all profits going to supporting our work.

The shop can be found here.

You can also SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER .

Subscribe to our Newsletter

View our  Privacy Policy and Terms & Conditions

Trending on TLE

  • All
  • trending
Abdollah

‘Rescue us’: Afghan teacher begs UK to help him escape Taliban

CHOMSKY: “If Corbyn had been elected, Britain would be pursuing a much more sane course”

What If We Got Rid Of Prisons?

More from TLE

EuroMillions Results for Tuesday 26 April 2022 Tonight’s winning numbers

Crowne Plaza – The City: Review

Financing Terror: Islamic State and the Price of Empire

A private equity secondaries deal sourcing app – not just for family offices?

Taking vitamin D pills could prevent diabetes

London house prices increase at fastest rate since 2016

Italy’s Threat to Vegan Parents is an Attack on Human Rights

‘Once more unto the breach’: IMF warns austerity measures could lead to financial meltdown

Rumours – Tottenham Hotspur, Manchester United, Everton, Arsenal & more

Hunt members cleared of breaching fox-hunting ban

JOBS

FIND MORE JOBS

About Us

TheLondonEconomic.com – Open, accessible and accountable news, sport, culture and lifestyle.

Read more

Contact

Editorial enquiries, please contact: [email protected]

Commercial enquiries, please contact: [email protected]

Address

The London Economic Newspaper Limited t/a TLE
Company number 09221879
International House,
24 Holborn Viaduct,
London EC1A 2BN,
United Kingdom

SUPPORT

We do not charge or put articles behind a paywall. If you can, please show your appreciation for our free content by donating whatever you think is fair to help keep TLE growing and support real, independent, investigative journalism.

DONATE & SUPPORT

© 2019 thelondoneconomic.com - TLE, International House, 24 Holborn Viaduct, London EC1A 2BN. All Rights Reserved.




No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • News
  • Politics
  • Business
  • Sport
  • Entertainment
  • Lifestyle
  • Food
  • Travel
  • JOBS
  • More…
    • Elevenses
    • Opinion
    • Property
    • Tech & Auto
  • About Us
    • Meet the Team
    • Privacy policy
  • Contact us

© 2019 thelondoneconomic.com - TLE, International House, 24 Holborn Viaduct, London EC1A 2BN. All Rights Reserved.