S&Ds: Brexit deal is edging closer, but devil remains in the detail
Date
15 Nov 2018
Sections
Justice & Home Affairs
The S&D Group takes note of the agreement that has been announced on the terms for an orderly withdrawal of the UK from the European Union.
Leading S&D MEPs stressed that it is now essential to scrutinise the details of the text and assess it on the basis of the principles that our group and the European Parliament have been defending from the outset of the negotiations; in particular the protection of citizens’ rights and safeguarding the EU’s social, labour and environmental standards.
S&D Group president Udo Bullmann and S&D spokesperson for Brexit, Roberto Gualtieri MEP, said:
“Over the past 18 months, we have worked closely with Michel Barnier’s team to ensure a fair deal on Brexit. Our group has always considered Brexit a historic mistake and a decision that can be reversed if the UK was to change its mind. Despite this, we have worked in a responsible way to ensure that the withdrawal of the UK from the European Union would happen in an orderly manner. We have worked to ensure that the rights of EU citizens are preserved, that there is no hardening of the border in Ireland, and the Good Friday Agreement is protected in its entirety. This could pave the way for a close future partnership between the EU and the UK which fully respects the integrity of the Single Market, the autonomy of the EU legal order, and its social, labour and environmental standards.
“We understand that the deal that has been announced could be in line with these principles. We will now carefully examine the text in detail in view of the vote that the European Parliament will cast on it.”