UK PM Sunak Risks Trade War With Brussels by Abolition of 2,400 EU Laws, Reports Say

In June 2016, 51.8 percent of the UK citizens voted to end the country's membership of the EU, against 48.1 percent of those who voted for the UK to stay in the union. And yet, six-and-a-half years later, the UK is still engaged in a long and convoluted series of negotiations trying to effect its divorce from the bloc.

UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak's plan to discard thousands of EU laws by the end of 2023 might lead to a full-scale trade war between London and Brussels, UK media has reported citing senior European Union officials.

Meanwhile, EU leaders are reportedly preparing their own “unilateral rebalancing measures” in secret meetings in Brussels. Sources suggest that these measures could include the option of imposing tariffs on UK goods entering the EU single market, according to media reports

All this may lead to a trade war with the bloc and serious damage to the UK economy.

The planned post-Brexit revision of the UK's lawbooks may erase more than 2,400 laws without much scrutiny, according to British press.

The tensions between the UK and the EU grew in June 2022, after the Johnson government introduced a Bill unilaterally revising the provisions of the Northern Ireland Protocol. The cabinet argued that the deal was not working, as it was causing delays and interruptions to the movement of goods between Northern Ireland and the rest of the nation. The Bill stipulates the establishment of a "green channel" for goods transported from the UK, as well as the change in tax rules, stripping the European Court of its role as the sole arbiter of disputes.

This move provoked the anger of the EU and prompted Brussels to take legal action against London.

The situation regarding Northern Ireland has recently worsened after the Sinn Fein party, which advocates reunification with Ireland, won the majority of seats in the Northern Irish assembly for the first time in its history.

A hat hangs on a coat stand in front of the Union flag (File)

© AP Photo / Francisco Seco

In June 2016, 51.8 percent of UK citizens voted in favor of terminating the country's membership of the EU, against 48.1 percent who voted to stay in the union. On 31 January 2020, the country left the bloc after 47 years of membership. A transition period continued until 31 December 2020, during which the UK was no longer a member of the EU but still remained in the EU single market and customs union. London and Brussels managed to negotiate an agreement on trade and cooperation during that period.