Original title: House of Commons initially passed Johnson Brexit Act Foreign Media: it will help Brexit on time next year.
According to foreign media reported on December 21, British Prime Minister Boris Johnson's Brexit agreement was initially adopted on the 20th, which is the first step towards realizing his campaign promise. Johnson promised to let Britain leave the European Union by January 31 next year.
According to Reuters on December 20, the British House of Commons passed the Brexit Agreement Act on second reading by a vote of 358 to 234. This is the bill required to approve the Brexit agreement with Brussels. The remaining parliamentary deliberations will be completed in January next year.
According to Reuters on December 20, the British Parliament voted to approve Johnson's Brexit agreement on the 20th. The prime minister said the move fulfilled his promise to complete a vote on the Brexit agreement by Christmas.
It has been more than three years since Britain voted to leave the European Union in 2016, the report said. Now, the uncertainty about Brexit has been replaced by a clear deadline of January 31 next year.
The final phase of the approval will take place after Christmas, the report said. The lower house of parliament will pass the bill by January 9 next year. After that, the bill will have more than three weeks to pass the upper house of parliament to vote, and get royal approval.
British Prime Minister Johnson said on the 20th that his Brexit agreement paves the way for a new agreement between Britain and its European neighbors on future relations, Reuters reported Tuesday. The new agreement is based on an ambitious free trade agreement-not in line with EU rules, but subject to British law.
In addition, according to a report on the Guardian website on December 19, British Prime Minister Johnson's Brexit agreement bill was announced. The bill removes provisions on the protection of workers' rights and unaccompanied refugee children, and that parliament has a say in future Anglo-European relations.
It is reported that the new bill removes or plays down a number of key protection measures of the bill last published in October. At that time, Johnson tried to win the support of some Labour backbenchers so that the bill could be passed by Parliament.
In terms of additions, the provisions introduced in the bill rule out the possibility of extending the Brexit transition period and allow the lower courts of the United Kingdom to overturn the decision of the European Court of Justice.
The report pointed out that on the whole, the bill greatly enhanced the power of the Johnson administration, enabling it to let Britain leave the European Union in a tougher way without parliamentary checks and balances.
According to Agence France-Presse on December 20, compared with the agreement reached by British Prime Minister Johnson with Brussels in October, the Brexit agreement voted in the British Parliament on the 20th has some subtle but possibly important changes.
The following is a summary of the agreement. Final approval of the agreement will help the British prime minister deliver on his promise to "complete Brexit" on January 31 next year.
Transition period
The transition period after Brexit will last until the end of 2020. In the meantime, the situation will remain basically the status quo. If the two sides agree, the transition period may be extended for another year or two.
Crucially, however, Mr Johnson added new wording to the bill submitted to parliament to prohibit London from seeking an extension if the two sides failed to reach a comprehensive new trade agreement in time.
Northern Ireland
The arrangement for Northern Ireland is the trickiest part of the new agreement. The new agreement replaces an agreement that Johnson's predecessor, Theresa May, failed to pass by Congress.
Under the new agreement, Northern Ireland will remain in the UK tariff area, but there will be some kind of tariff boundary between the region and the rest of the UK.
I agree
Britain and the European Union agree that the application of Northern Ireland's tariff rules requires "democratic consent".
After the end of the Brexit transition period, the Northern Ireland Parliament may have to vote every four or eight years on whether to continue the system.
Concession
The EU pointed out that it had made a compromise on the previous Brexit agreement, no longer insisting that Northern Ireland must remain in the EU customs zone-the core of a "safeguard clause" that was previously unpopular in London.
It also adopted provisions on parliamentary voting in Northern Ireland, as well as ways to terminate the provisions, rather than allowing them to apply indefinitely.
On the other hand, the United Kingdom allows for customs checks between Northern Ireland and the rest of the United Kingdom.
It also agreed that Northern Ireland would be subject to a degree of EU supervision.