on December 18, 2020
Parliament hopes for an agreement on the future relationship between the EU and the UK, but needs time for scrutiny, stressed MEPs in a debate on Friday.
During the debate with Commission Vice-President Maroš Šefčovič and EU chief negotiator Michel Barnier, almost all speakers stressed that the Parliament prefers to sign a deal with the UK, but not at the cost of endangering the integrity of the single market.
They welcomed Friday’s upcoming vote on contingency measures in preparation for a possible no-deal scenario. Speakers emphasised that the deal the EU proposed is unprecedented in its scope and its offer of no tariffs and quotas, but in exchange the UK needs to respect fair competition rules. The too short deadline for the negotiation of such an unprecedented deal was set by the UK, they recalled. Echoing chief EU negotiator Michel Barnier, MEPs called for the EU’s fishing fleet to be given unfettered access to UK waters.