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Brexit not the priority for European Union countries, admits Philip Hammond

BelfastTelegraph.co.uk

Brexit is not a dominant issue for European Union countries, Philip Hammond acknowledged as he called for jobs and prosperity to be the first priority in the negotiations.

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Brexit is not a dominant issue for European Union countries, Philip Hammond acknowledged as he called for jobs and prosperity to be the first priority in the negotiations.

The Chancellor told business leaders that the UK had to remember that Brexit was "just one among many challenges" facing the other EU members.

He said the Government had to "focus relentlessly" on the key components of a free trade deal and customs agreement that "minimises friction", with transitional arrangements to avoid a cliff-edge change on the day the UK breaks away from Brussels.

Curbing migration has been a key demand for many Brexit supporters, but Mr Hammond said that while managing the system was important, businesses and public services must be able to recruit from overseas.

In a speech at a Confederation of British Industry dinner, Mr Hammond said the right Brexit outcome would mean: " A comprehensive free trade deal in goods and services t hat allows the complex value chains that criss-cross our continent to continue to operate smoothly.

"A customs arrangement that minimises friction at the border with a transition that prioritises protection of the free flow of trade across our borders until the agreed long-term arrangements can be put fully in place.

"A future relationship that acknowledges our need to manage migration but allows British businesses and public services to continue to recruit the labour they need to deliver both economic growth and our social objectives."

The deal would acknowledge the "legitimate concerns" of the EU around regulation of financial markets and set up a "co-operative supervisory structure".

"We seek a shared understanding on what the future relationship looks like as early as possible and an agreement with our EU partners that it will be in our mutual interest that there will be a smooth and orderly path to the new arrangements, rather than a disruptive and dangerous cliff-edge.

"Because what businesses and citizens crave more than anything is clarity about the future."

Mr Hammond acknowledged that Brexit was not the main issue on the agenda for many EU countries.

After speaking at a German business conference, he said he was " struck once again during that visit by the 'asymmetry of attention' to this issue. For us, Brexit is the dominant focus; for many of our continental partners, it is just one among many challenges vying for attention".

"We need to remember that fact as we seek their attention to make these arguments," he said.

"And it is incumbent on all of us, in business and in government alike, to go on making the case for a Brexit outcome that protects jobs and prosperity and a transition that takes us to it smoothly."

Mr Hammond urged business leaders to have their say, including by contributing to a new advisory group being set up with Brexit Secretary David Davis and Business Secretary Greg Clark.

Efforts to build bridges with Brussels may have been dealt a blow as a recording emerged of Brexit minister - and prominent Eurosceptic - Steve Baker calling for the EU to be "torn down".

Ministers have repeatedly stressed they want a successful EU to continue after Brexit, but Mr Baker's comments, recorded in 2010, are at odds with that approach.

In the recording, obtained by The Independent, Mr Baker can be seen telling an event organised by the Libertarian Alliance: " I think Ukip and the Better Off Out campaign lack ambition. I think the European Union needs to be wholly torn down.

"The thing is, of course, that is actually impractical unless the whole people of Europe can be persuaded to rise up and vote for politicians who are prepared - in a moderate and consistent and principled and gentle way - to say that the European Union project has merely succeeded in raising economic nationalism to a continental scale."

CBI deputy director-general Josh Hardie said: "Businesses will welcome the Chancellor's commitment to sound public finances at home and a smooth exit from the EU that will support our economy in this time of change.

"Companies will want to see transitional arrangements that prioritise protection of the free flow of trade across borders agreed as soon as possible, and will also want to understand more about how continuity for companies can be secured until long-term arrangements can be established.

"A new migration system allowing firms to access the skills and labour they need to succeed globally is of the utmost importance as the UK seeks to renew its trading relationships around the world, and the Chancellor's commitment to this will be warmly received."

He added: "Now more than ever it's critical that the whole of Government works in partnership with business to make a success of Brexit - that means putting economics before politics to safeguard our economy and prosperity for future generations."

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Brexit not the priority for European Union countries, admits Philip Hammond - Belfast Telegraph

EU chief observer Marietje Schaake speaks during the Press conference on the upcoming election in Kenya. [photo by Beverlyne Musili]

The European Union (EU) is warning that the country risks plunging into election-related violence due to the heightened campaigns that appear to be polarising.

The head of the EU Election Observer Mission (EOM), Marietje Schaake, yesterday called on all players to take precautions to forestall violence.

I would like to say that it is no secret there are concerns about the possible outbreak of violence. This is not inevitable, and it is clear that this would create a situation where everyone loses, Ms Schaake said.

The EOM chief observer said State agencies bear the greatest responsibility in forestalling chaos.

There is a responsibility for each and every one to grant each other the right and safety to vote according to his or her conscience, she said.

The EU warning comes as the country prepares for the August 8 election, with the main competitors trading accusations and allegations.

ALSO READ: Governor Munya threatens to withdraw support for Uhuru re-election

The Jubilee administration has accused opposition leaders of seeking to incite communities over land issues while the latter have accused the government side of plotting to rig the polls.

On Sunday night, Raila presidential campaign team member and economist David Ndii claimed that the country would burn if President Kenyatta is declared victor in a sham election. [Geoffrey Mosoku]

Read the original:
European Union team warns about election-related chaos - The Standard

The European Union Election Observations Mission (EUEOM) has challenged stakeholders in the August elections to grow their responsibility and give one another a right to safety to vote on their cognizant.

The mission has called on the stakeholders to grow this responsibility to the proportion of their influence as state bodies and political players ahead of the polls.

EUEOM stated that their role will be to have a keen eye on the electioneering processes in Kenya and that they will not by any way act as investigators or take part in the organization of the elections.

The mission at a presser in Nairobi on Monday clarified that looking at how Kenyan law and the international laws are upheld and respected during the campaigns, elections and the aftermath of the August 8 polls.

A team of 30 long-term observers on the mission had been deployed across the country since April this year and were keen on the political parties primaries.

Another 32 short term observers are also in the country drawn from Switzerland, Norway and other EU member states countries will be in the company of diplomatic troops that will witness the August elections.

The group has observed that the campaigns had already sparked public debate and that Kenyans were now evidently aware of the significance of their right to vote.

The team will make public all its observations and recommendations so as to ensure their role is properly understood throughout the period pledging that they will operate strictly impartial and independent since the organization, safety and integrity of elections it is the responsibility of the stakeholders.

They have noted that the new constitution provides for balance of power, public participation, inclusion of women and that it will be a moment to see how these constitutional provisions play out in the process.

The body however notes that it is no secret that there were concerns about the possible outbreak of violence which they believe is not inevitable as it would create a situation where everybody loses calling for individual responsibility to grant each other the right and safety to vote according to their conscious.

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European Union mission warns of possible post-election violence, hands stakeholders major challenge - The Standard

French President Emmanuel Macron says he plans to launch "democratic conventions" across Europe in a bid to "refound" the European Union.

Macron made the announcement on July 3 during a rare joint session of the French parliament in which he called on a "new generation of leaders" to reinvigorate the 28-member bloc.

"The last decade was a cruel one for Europe," Macron told lawmakers. "We managed crises, but we lost our way."

"That is why a new generation of leaders must take up the European idea again at its origin, which is essentially political," he added.

Macron said France and Germany would launch "democratic conventions," in the form of national debates about the EU, across the continent by the end of the year.

He said that EU leaders need to battle skepticism among the public, which he said was not without merit.

"I firmly believe in Europe, but I don't find this skepticism unjustified," Macron said, saying the bloc has been "weakened by the spread of bureaucracy."

Macron soundly defeated far-right politician Marine Le Pen, a fierce EU critic, in a May 7 presidential runoff.

In the same speech, Macron also announced that "this autumn" he will lift a state of emergency implemented in 2015 following a terrorist attack in Paris that killed 130 people, adding that the government would also bolster security measures to combat Islamic extremism.

"I will reestablish the freedoms of the French people by lifting the state of emergency this autumn because these freedoms are the precondition of the existence of a strong democracy," he said.

He said that his government would "work to prevent any new attack and fight extremists without pity, without regrets, without weakness."

But he also stressed the importance of guaranteeing "full respect for individual liberties."

The state of emergency enacted after the November 2015 Paris nightclub attack has been extended five times. It is expected to be extended again in July by Macron's centrist government while a tough new antiterrorism law is being prepared.

Rights watchdogs have said French authorities are abusing antiterrorism measures to curtail legitimate dissent.

Read the original post:
Macron Announces Bid To Reinvigorate 'Weakened' EU - RadioFreeEurope/RadioLiberty

According to analysts customs unions concern trade in goods so they should not constrain what the UK does in the services sector. Photograph: Chris Ratcliffe/Bloomberg via Getty Images

Signing Britain up to a customs union with the European Union need not prevent it from striking important trade deals elsewhere, according to influential new thinking in Whitehall.

Officials and business leaders are anxious to puncture what they see as myths about a customs union that have deterred ministers from considering it as a much-needed economic option after Brexit.

While leaving the existing EU customs union is a direct consequence of Brexit, civil servants believe that agreeing a new customs union with the EU is not only possible but still compatible with key aims of Liam Foxs Department for International Trade.

There is a crucial difference between the [existing] customs union and a [future] customs union and [chancellor Philip] Hammond understands this now because the Treasury have taken him through it, said one official familiar with the process.

The simplistic analysis by those who want to paint it in the worst way is that its totally unacceptable because we would still be bound by EU trade deals. That is true of membership of EU customs union but you can have customs unions with the European Union customs union.

Such a deal would allow physical products to trade freely across borders without export duties or delay only as long as the EU and UK shared a common external tariff with other countries. But most experts are agreed that such a deal need not prevent Britain seeking deals with countries outside the EU to liberalise trade in the crucial services sector.

Customs unions are about trade in goods by definition because you only pay tariffs on goods, explained the anonymous official. They are nothing to do with the trade in services, which is the majority of what the UK does, so why should signing up to a customs union to facilitate what you do in trade in goods constrain what you do in services?

We could go off and see if we can do better than the EU in trade in services, they added. There is an argument that is not a bad thing to try because the EU generally, particularly France and Germany, has never been keen on liberalising trade in services. Its never been keen in the single market, let alone with third parties, so the UK striking out on its own might be able to do a bit better. The point is what you dont do is ruin your trade in goods while you find out.

Importantly from a British perspective, Turkey, which has such a customs union with the EU, is not obliged to follow EU single market rules on allowing freedom of movement.

Its still challenging, but a lot of this is why people have started talking about customs union so much recently, said the official, who believes some immigration agreement would still be necessary. You cant get anywhere on trade in services without discussing the terms on which the people providing the services can move back and forth.

Nonetheless, this variant of soft Brexit could prove more palatable than full membership of the single market to many in Westminster and business.

Though retaining a customs union with the EU would madden the Tory right, there is a strong macro-economic case for doing so, said Charles Grant, director of the Centre for European Reform. According to the Treasurys unpublished analysis, the economic benefits of future [free trade agreements] would be significantly less than the economic cost of leaving the customs union.

The government has spoken little about its plans since Theresa Mays Lancaster House speech when she called instead for a bespoke customs union with carve-outs for vulnerable sectors such as the car industry.

This was dismissed by EU leaders as cherry-picking and would breach World Trade Organisation rules that say bilateral customs unions are only permissible if they cover substantially all trade in goods.

Privately, officials in Brussels are said to be much more open to the idea of a wide-ranging new customs union with Britain, as long as it respects existing common market rules and has a dispute resolution mechanism such as the European court of justice.

Original post:
New customs union with EU after Brexit is still an option, analysts say - The Guardian