BERLIN: Britain will have to compromise on issues such as consumer rights and environment protection if it wants to maintain full access to the European Union’s single market, German Foreign Minister Heiko Maas said on Wednesday.
“By the end of the year, we need to be clear on the shape of our relationship,” Maas wrote in a guest article in German weekly Die Zeit in reference to the post-Brexit transition period.
“So let me say very openly: Yes, we all want zero tariffs and zero trade barriers, but that also means zero dumping and zero unfair competition. Without similar standards to protect our workers, our consumers and the environment, there can be no full access to the largest single market in the world.”
Britain and the European Union will therefore have to conduct the negotiations on their post-Brexit economic relations in a way that “won’t harm the European Union,” Maas said.
Turning to security and defense policies, the minister said that Britain and the EU needed to develop new forms of cooperation, for example by creating a European Security Council.
Such a council could help coordinate joint positions on strategic issues of European security and to respond more quickly to international crises. “We are working with France to flesh out this idea as quickly as possible in order to build a foundation for our future relationship,” Maas wrote.
The German minister also suggested that the EU’s door would always remain open for Britain to come back.
Referring to the Beatles song “Hello, goodbye,” Maas said that both sides had sorted out the goodbye.
“But should this farewell ever turn out to be less final than anticipated, rest assured that we will always have a place for you at our table in Brussels and in our hearts,” he added.
Britain must accept EU standards if it wants full market access: Germany’s Maas
https://arab.news/zyd89
Britain must accept EU standards if it wants full market access: Germany’s Maas
- ‘By the end of the year, we need to be clear on the shape of our relationship’
- Referring to the Beatles song “Hello, goodbye,” Maas said that both sides had sorted out the goodbye
Saudi Arabia merges National Competitiveness Center and Saudi Business Center
RIYADH: Saudi Arabia has merged the National Competitiveness Center and the Saudi Business Center under a unified entity named the Saudi Competitiveness and Business Center to streamline business reforms.
The decision was announced during the Cabinet session held in Jeddah on Feb. 24 and chaired by Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman.
Majid Al-Kassabi, minister of commerce and chairman of the boards of both centers, praised the leadership’s continued support for the private sector, saying the merger will enhance Saudi Arabia’s competitiveness and elevate its ranking in relevant international indicators and reports.
He said the decision will enhance the Kingdom’s competitiveness and elevate its ranking in relevant indicators and reports. It will also facilitate procedures for starting and conducting economic businesses and provide all related services and work by adopting the best international methods and practices.
Al-Kassabi said the Saudi Competitiveness and Business Center will continue delivering more than 6,000 government services to the business sector, in integration with relevant government entities, at the highest levels of quality and innovation. Services will be provided through the unified business platform and 20 branches across 15 cities.
He said the merger will unify channels for monitoring challenges facing the private sector and implement targeted reforms to facilitate business, adding that it will enhance the Kingdom’s global competitiveness and maximize the benefits of partnerships with local and international entities and organizations, especially in knowledge transfer and the exchange of expertise.
He said the center will work with the public and private sectors to place the Kingdom among the world’s most competitive countries and make its business environment a global model for the quality, smoothness and efficiency of government services directed to the business sector.
