Position paper - Transitional arrangements: A Brexit necessity

The Brexit negotiations are already proving to be highly political and extraordinarily complex. It is increasingly clear that the two-year timeframe mandated by Article 50 for the UK’s withdrawal will be wholly insufficient – both to define the terms of an ambitious new relationship between the EU and the UK, and to allow appropriate time for companies to adapt to new requirements. Moreover, the new institutional and legal frameworks required post-Brexit are highly unlikely to be in place on the date of the UK’s departure.

A comprehensive transitional arrangement – based on the UK’s existing terms with the EU, implemented for as long as necessary, and agreed as soon as possible – is essential to mitigate risk and to reduce uncertainty for EU and US companies, who are heavily invested in and indeed serve both regions, and who are currently planning for the worst-case scenario.