Yet the EU seems to think that a mere FTA would allow post-Brexit UK to outcompete that single market. 🤔
1. Something that's really struck me in the Brexit negotiations this year is the surprisingly fragile confidence the EU seem to have in the competitive advantage conferred by the single market. Sounds strange, but bear with me.
(Thread)
Yet the EU seems to think that a mere FTA would allow post-Brexit UK to outcompete that single market. 🤔
https://t.co/irsRwPApxr
Have heard similar. This essentially amounts to trying to force dynamic alignment through the back door. I don't think UK can or will accept this. A thread with some potential solutions & noting some irony... 1/ https://t.co/1mIB1hWyVX
— Raoul Ruparel (@RaoulRuparel) December 9, 2020
- Customs and regulatory barriers
- No free movement
- Rules of origin
Hardly a menu for out-competing the SM, you'd think, even with more freedom on LPF.
Perhaps, ironically, the EU actually rates the UK's chances of 'making a success of Brexit' by out-competing them quite highly. Despite the clear absence of any desire in the UK for a so-called 'Singapore on Thames' model.
But if you follow the logic, it doesn't seem that the EU has a great deal of faith in the ability of the SM to withstand competition. Or the SM's superiority to an FTA.