British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak Will Not Pursue Swiss-Style Trade Deal To Remove Barriers with the European Union

Newly-appointed British Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said that he has ruled out any Swiss-style trade deal to remove barriers with the European Union, bringing back debate regarding Brexit.

The announcement comes as Eurosceptic Tory MPs have claimed that Chancellor Jeremy Hunt was trying to soften former Prime Minister Boris Johnson's Brexit deal. Sunak recently insisted during the CBI conference held in Birmingham that Johnson's "bare bones" Brexit deal, the Trade and Cooperation Agreement, could "deliver enormous benefits for the country."

Swiss-Style Trade Deal

However, many Conservative MPs believe that Hunt, who has supported Remain in the 2016 Brexit referendum and wants to remove the "vast majority" of trade barriers between the United Kingdom and the European Union, is attempting to push for a softer form of the deal.

The TCA removes quotes and tariffs from the majority of trades but still leaves in place many major regulatory hurdles, due to Britain's exclusion from the single market. Last week, the independent Office for Budget Responsibility said that Brexit had caused a "significant adverse effect on trade" in the region, as per the Financial Times.

Last week, Finance Minister Hunt said that "unfettered trade" with the country's neighbors was going to be beneficial for growth. However, he declined to say how the British government could tear down such barriers when it is just outside the single market.

The official added that he was confident that in the next few years, they will be able to remove the vast majority of the trade barriers that exist between the UK and the EU. However, Downing Street disagreed and refused to support Hunt's plans, acknowledging that the EU made it clear that Britain would pay a price for the "hard" Brexit that Johnson negotiated.

According to Reuters, while Switzerland has access to the EU's single market, it is required to accept conditions, such as freedom of movement and payments into the bloc's budget. In a statement, Health Minister Steve Barclay said that he did not recognize the plan at all, saying that he wants to maximize the opportunities that Brexit offers.

Debate on Brexit

A former minister, Simon Clarke, was among those who criticized any suggestion that Britain could attempt to pursue a Swiss-style deal. On Twitter, he posted that he had hoped and believed that such a deal was not under consideration by officials.

Johnson's chief Brexit negotiator, David Frost, said that if the claims were correct, he hoped that the British government would think of better plans, and fast. One of the most high-profile faces of the campaign to leave the EU, Nigel Farage, tweeted that the situation was a level of betrayal that will never be forgiven.

In Sunak's remarks, the prime minister said that under his leadership, the United Kingdom will not work towards any form of relationship with Europe that relies on alignment with EU laws. He also noted that he previously voted in support of Brexit, the controversial referendum that was led by British conservatives to leave the EU in 2019, making headlines worldwide, UPI reported.