Passports, Roaming, Driving Licences If No Deal: Brexit Update
Carney Joins Cabinet Meeting on No-Deal Planning: Brexit Update
(Bloomberg) -- The U.K. issues another batch of papers on its preparations for a no-deal Brexit following a Cabinet meeting, which Bank of England Governor Mark Carney also attended.
Firearms (1:38 p.m.)
Here is something gun owners should know: “Should the UK leave the EU with no deal, European Firearms Passes would no longer be available to UK residents wishing to travel with their firearms to EU countries. UK residents wishing to travel to EU countries with their firearm or shotgun after 29 March 2019 should contact the authorities of the countries concerned for information about their licensing requirements.”
Mobile roaming (1:32 p.m.)
Highlights on whether using your phone in the EU will cost more. Click here for the full thing.
- Surcharge free mobile roaming not guaranteed in no-deal scenario.
- U.K. would set a data charge limit at GBP45 per month, in line with present limit of 50 euros as per EU law, and ensure data limit alerts continue.
- Apart from that it would become a commercial question for operators.
- The government also warns phone users of inadvertent roaming into EU near Irish border.
Trading goods (1:30 p.m.)
In event of a no-deal, it would seem that the U.K. would still allow EU-approved goods in. That would not be the case in reverse.
Trading goods regulated under the ‘New Approach’ if there’s no Brexit deal: “For the bulk of manufactured goods, the U.K. will continue to allow imports that meet EU requirements for a “time-limited” period after a no-deal Brexit. Products for export to the bloc that have been tested and conformity-marked by a U.K. body will need further testing and conformity marking by an EU body, according to the government. For imports, a new U.K. conformity marking will be introduced, though initially the EU marking will be permitted in the event of no deal.”
Common travel area? (1:27 p.m.)
Travelling in the Common Travel Area if there’s no Brexit deal: “There would be no practical changes to the UK’s approach to immigration on journeys within the CTA: as now there would be no routine immigration controls on journeys from within the CTA to the UK. If you are an Irish citizen you would continue to have the right to enter and remain in the UK, as now. You are not required to do anything to protect your status.”
Now onto competition (1:22 p.m.)
Businesses face dual merger reviews and antitrust investigations by U.K. and EU antitrust authorities, the government warns. Most firms "will not need to take any action except to continue to comply as normal" with competition rules that continue to apply in both jurisdictions.
Companies planning a merger in the run up to March 2019 should seek "early engagement" with the Competition and Markets Authority and the European Commission who could advise whether they will need to file to both authorities.
The EU will still be able to investigate U.K. firms if they do something that distorts competition in the bloc. Victims of cartels seeking damages in the U.K. courts will be able to do so as a foreign tort decision but may need to make parallel claims in the U.K. and in courts of an EU state.
What happens to your driving license? (1:18 pm.)
This could be alarming if you plan to drive to France: "Your driving licence may no longer be valid by itself when driving in the EU.”
More: “If you move to another EU country to live, you may not be able to exchange your licence after the UK has left the EU... If there is no deal with the EU, you may need to obtain an International Driving Permit (IDP) to drive in the EU.”
And also: “If there is no deal with the EU, you may need to obtain an International Driving Permit (IDP) to drive in the EU. An IDP is a document which when carried with your driving licence means you would be able to drive outside of the UK including in EU countries. There are different types of IDP. Which one you need depends on which country you are driving in.”
On to satellites and Galileo (1:15 p.m.)
Satellites and space programmes if there’s no Brexit deal: “UK-based businesses, academics and researchers will be unable to bid for future EU Global Navigation Satellite System contracts and may face difficulty carrying out and completing existing contracts. For example, it may not be possible for businesses or organisations which currently host Galileo and European Geostationary Navigation Overlay ground infrastructure to continue to do so.”
Read more here.
Here is some details on passports (1:11 p.m.)
Travelling to the EU with a UK pasport if there’s no Brexit deal: “Passports printed between 30 March 2019 up until the introduction of the new passport design will be burgundy but will not include the words ‘European Union’. Blue passports will start being issued from late 2019.”
British citizens will have to keep a closer eye on when their passports expire. In a no-deal Brexit, Britons will have to have six months left on their passports to travel to the passport-free Schengen area.
And they’ve landed! (1:06 p.m.)
The documents are beginning to drop in various places. Click here. We’ll start teasing out the news in separate sections.
No Deal Means More Red Tape (12:50 p.m)
The U.K. will introduce a new conformity marking for British-made products to show they conform with government standards, a person familiar with the no-deal papers says. That’s in addition to the European Union’s existing CE marking they currently need for products destined for EU markets. It’s more evidence for those who argue that even though leaving the EU was supposed to unshackle Britain from the Brussels bureaucracy, it could mean more red tape.
Read more: Jaguar Land Rover’s Downsized Bond Deal Signals Cautious Market
Carney attends Cabinet meeting on no-deal Brexit (10:38 a.m.)
Pictures of Bank of England Governor Mark Carney entering the back door of 10 Downing Street -- where ministers are discussing contingency plans for if the government can’t reach a Brexit deal with the European Union -- were posted by a photographer known for snapping images of briefing documents.
His attendance comes days after Chancellor of the Exchequer Philip Hammond announced Carney will extend his tenure by seven months to ensure continuity during the potentially turbulent period after Brexit.
"He was outlining the preparatory work the bank are doing around no deal," said Prime Minister Theresa May’s spokeswoman, Alison Donnelly.
The governor has previously said that he spends about half of his time working on issues related to Britain’s departure from the EU.
The BOE is set to publish its latest policy decision at 12 p.m., with all 60 economists surveyed by Bloomberg predicting officials will keep the key interest rate at 0.75 percent.
Earlier:
Brexit Bulletin: Momentum Is Growing
Tory Rebels See Three-Week Deadline for May to Dump Brexit Plan
EU Said to See Shift on Irish Border as Brexit Rebels Plot
Prospect of ‘No Deal’ Brexit Has Risen Materially, Moody’s Says
--With assistance from David Goodman, Lucy Meakin, Thomas Seal, Siraj Datoo, Neil Callanan and Anthony Aarons.
To contact the reporters on this story: Robert Hutton in London at rhutton1@bloomberg.net;Alex Morales in London at amorales2@bloomberg.net;Suzi Ring in London at sring5@bloomberg.net
To contact the editors responsible for this story: Flavia Krause-Jackson at fjackson@bloomberg.net, Stuart Biggs
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