Last week, four years after the referendum on its membership in European institutions, Britain reached a joint outline with the 27 member states of the Union, which regulates the future of its relations with them.
As part of the outline, it was agreed not to impose significant tariffs on British goods, and to gain British control of the fishing industry in the kingdom’s territorial waters. However, despite the exemption from tariffs on goods, the Union will be able to impose tariffs on the services sector.
There will be plenty who will be only too happy to say goodbye to the grimness of 2020.
But this was also the year when we rediscovered a spirit of togetherness, of community.
In 2021 we have our freedom in our hands and it is up to us to make the most of it. Happy New Year! pic.twitter.com/gDRXe2SuCb
– Boris Johnson (@BorisJohnson) December 31, 2020
Speaking to the British nation ahead of the new civil year, Prime Minister Boris Johnson said: “Britain is free to do things differently and even better than our EU members. This is an amazing moment for this country.”
Meanwhile, Stanley Johnson, the father of the British prime minister, said yesterday in an interview with RTL radio that he had applied for a French passport in order to maintain his ties with the European Union. Reuters reported that Johnson, a MEP, had made it clear he was interested in French citizenship because of his French roots. “If I understand it correctly, I’m French,” Johnson Sr. said. “My mother was born in France. Her mother was completely French like her grandfather. For me, it’s giving back to myself what I already have, and that makes me very happy.”