The Brexit Vote: Its Impact on the Canada-EU Comprehensive Economic and Trade Agreement and UK’s Obligations Under Comprehensive Trade and Economic Trade Agreement

Abstract

With the United Kingdom’s (UK) announcement of its withdrawal from the European Union (EU), questions have arisen with respect to the applicability of the Comprehensive Trade and Economic Trade Agreement (CETA) between the EU and Canada to UK-Canada trade and investment before the UK’s withdrawal is complete. This article concludes that until such withdrawal, and pending appropriate approvals in both the EU and Canada, the CETA will apply provisionally to Canada and UK trade. While the exact boundaries of provisional application are not clear, the EU commission believes that other than a very limited set of mostly investment related provisions, provisional application would be extensive. Once the UK withdraws from the EU, the CETA will no longer apply to the UK. CETA is regarded as a high quality free trade agreement. This article concludes that as the UK has already agreed to the terms of the CETA, should both Canada and the UK wish, the path is available to them to have CETA function as template for a Canada-UK Free Trade Agreement. Although these negotiations may not formally commence while CETA provisionally applies to the UK and it is an EU Member State, Canada and the UK can conduct information discussions to map out areas for inclusion in a free trade agreement and the use, or not, of the CETA provisions as a basis for such agreement.