“The deal limits the damage“, but there are still constraints, said Friday, December 25 on franceinfo Bernard Spitz, president of the international and Europe pole of Medef, after the post-Brexit trade agreement concluded between the European Union and the United Kingdom. , there’ll be “more paperwork, more delays, more costs” in trade between the EU and the UK. Bernard Spitz underlines that if Boris Johnson “limit the damage”, l’Europe “managed to stay until the end” and Michel Barnier “managed to unite everyone”.
franceinfo: What does this trade agreement change for French companies doing business with the United Kingdom?
Bernard Spitz : The deal limits the damage, but Brexit remains. And Brexit means that from today the UK is a third country. It is no longer a country in the European Union. And the consequences for companies are a number of things. First, any commercial exchange becomes export and import. So it is true that we have escaped customs duties. But there are still customs formalities. There are administrative formalities. These are new data that govern the transfer of personal data. These are constraints when you put products on the market. We will need certifications. It is even clearer in health matters, for example. But even for spare parts, in the automobile, in aviation, certifications will be required so that these parts can be assembled. And then there are the individuals above all, because obviously it is not the same thing anymore. To go to the United Kingdom, you will need to have a visa. It changes the rules of the game up to the students who will be deprived of Erasmus for example.
Whether it’s for businesses or for individuals, is it a lot more paperwork for everyone?
It’s more paperwork, therefore more delays, more costs. This means that it will create difficulties for everyone, especially for companies that have never worked outside the European Union. We know that there are approximately 120,000 French companies that export or import with the United Kingdom. But a quarter of these, that is to say around 30,000, have never traded elsewhere than in the Union. So, for them, it becomes like an external market. We will have to adapt to all of this and there are obviously complications and costs.
Were you prepared for worse? As for French companies, you had anticipated the absence of an agreement?
I think a number of companies had to imagine all the scenarios, including the worst-case scenarios. But the political will was on both sides to achieve a result. Because Brexit is bad for everyone anyway. In any case, economically. So for companies, it had to be as little as possible and that everyone save face. Boris Johnson fought until the last moment. He can be satisfied because, in a way, he managed to maneuver to come up with something that limits the economic damage to his country, including to British companies who did not take a good liking to it at all. . And then, he gives satisfaction to these ultras by saying, we have regained control. So he can say that there is a reality to Brexit. He kept the commitments as he had announced them.
What is essential is safe, since we have not broken off trade between French companies and their British counterparts?
Neither with French companies, nor with all companies in the European Union. But what is the major element of satisfaction is that Europe has managed to stay until the end, until Christmas, to remain united. And it was not won. Tribute must be paid to Michel Barnier, who managed to unite everyone and to ensure that this agreement is found in the best possible conditions.
–
