Brexit

Luxembourg has ‘thrown its hat in the ring’ to become the new home of the European Banking Authority (EBA) after Brexit and says it has a "legal claim" to host it.

Citing a European Union law dating back to 1965, Luxembourg Prime Minister Xavier Bettel made his case in a letter to EU Council President Donald Tusk and European Commission head Jean-Claude Juncker, following the triggering of Article 50.

In the past, two exceptions to the decision have been made with the ECB going to Frankfurt and the EBA going to London.

Nine months after the historic referendum in which the UK population voted to leave the European Union, the UK government has at last served notice to quit.
Theresa May yesterday signed the letter that will formally begin the UK’s departure from the European Union, starting a process which will eventually make clear how the country will trade with the EU and the rest of the world.

Since the Brexit vote last summer, the UK life sciences sector have been seeking answers as how it can trade and collaborate with Europe, and continue to flourish as a centre for science and innovation.

The UK could be left without any flights to and from Europe after Brexit, Ryanair has warned. The low-cost airline said aviation should be treated as a matter of urgency in Brexit negotiations, as summer schedules for 2019 must be finalised by March next year.
The Dublin-headquartered company, which operates more than 1,800 flights to over 200 destinations in 33 countries daily, urged the UK Government to “put aviation at the forefront of its negotiations with the EU and provide a coherent post-Brexit plan,” said Ryanair’s Kenny Jacobs in a statement.

The merger between the Deutsche Börse and the London Stock Exchange has been vetoed by the European Commission because of competition concerns, ending a third attempt in 17 years to unite the financial hubs of London and Frankfurt.
In a statement on Wednesday, EU Competition Commissioner Margrethe Vestager said Britain’s decision to leave the 28-nation bloc had played no role in banning the tie-up.

The UK could be a “serious competitor” to Switzerland as a low-tax business location in a post-Brexit world, Mr Mauer, the Swiss finance minister said: “That is perhaps the chance – that we have a partner in the same position, which on important issues is close to us.”

On Wednesday, UK Prime Minister Theresa May will kick off two years of formal negotiations with 27 EU governments. She still wants tariff-free, friction-less trade with Europe but prioritizes the right to impose immigration limits above all else.

Mr Maurer said: “The UK has lots of advantages and if they are used cleverly to decouple from the EU, as well as the new freedom in a good bilateral relationship, then the UK could develop very positively, I’m convinced of that.” If no favourable deal is struck, the tax rate could be dropped even lower to attract business, chancellor Philip Hammond has recently said.

German citizens still possess the world’s most powerful passport, according to new research, the 12th annual edition of the Henley & Partners Visa Restrictions Index, which is produced in partnership with the International Air Transport Association (IATA).

The ranking takes into account how many countries can be visited without applying for a visa. German passport holders can travel to 176 out of a possible 218, while Britons can visit 173; for the fourth year in a row, it has been crowned “world’s most powerful passport.”

The UK topped the 2015 rankings, alongside Germany, but ceded that spot after several countries relaxed visa restrictions to the latter. It was leapfrogged by Sweden last year and now lags behind Denmark, Finland, Italy, Spain and the US.

The cost of making a car in the UK could increase by £2,370 ($2,930) in the event of a hard Brexit, according to research published by PA Consulting Group. The tariffs would apply to both imported and exported cars with the report stating carmakers would be likely to pass any price increases to buyers.

The report explained that the increased cost of manufacturing could be the case if the UK falls back on World Trade Organisation (WTO) rules post Brexit. It warned that the 10% WTO tariffs on exporting and importing with the European Union (EU), could force some manufacturers in the UK to relocate outside the country.

British prime minister Theresa May will trigger article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty, the formal notification of the United Kingdom’s intention to leave the European Union, on March 29th, a spokesman for the British leader said on Monday.
More than 40 years after the UK joined the EU and nine months since it voted to quit it, Britain’s envoy to the bloc, Tim Barrow, informed EU President Donald Tusk on Monday of her plan to invoke Article 50 of the Lisbon Treaty, the mechanism for quitting that has never been used.