Tag: Kirsty Blackman

UK, EU, WTO, Brexit primer — 2. Tariff quotas

Continuing a look at what lies behind the sudden surge in interest in the UK’s and EU’s relationship with the World Trade Organization. Part 2: the ABCs of tariff quotas

There are newer versions of this article:
(1) an explanation of tariff quotas
(2) an update of what has happened with the UK’s and EU’s talks with WTO members on their post-Brexit goods schedules

By Peter Ungphakorn
POSTED OCTOBER 7, 2017 | UPDATED NOVEMBER 25, 2017

When the press learned that the UK and EU had agreed on a common approach for their talks with other World Trade Organization (WTO) members, the headlines spoke of a “breakthrough” and a “deal”. A closer look suggests this was an exaggeration. But the issue is important, nonetheless. Continue reading “UK, EU, WTO, Brexit primer — 2. Tariff quotas”

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If the EU and UK fall back on WTO commitments what does this mean for services?

Be warned. I’m not about to give a proper answer. This is an attempt to point to where the information can be found. There’s so much detail — 160 sub-sectors of it — I’ll wait for others to take up the baton

Air transport: WTO commitments on all services are unbelievably complicated, but landing rights are totally excluded

By Peter Ungphakorn
POSTED APRIL 12, 2017 | UPDATED MARCH 11, 2020

A lot has been said about the impact on trade in goods if the UK and EU fail to strike a free trade deal after Brexit. They would rely on their WTO commitments, such as on tariffs and quotas. Much less has been said about the commitments on services, despite their importance to the UK economy.

This is not surprising. Firstly, countries’ commitments in the WTO on opening their services markets (known as services “schedules”) are unbelievably complicated. The WTO has a 2,000-word guide to understanding them (approximately 5 pages) — and even that is written for readers who are already familiar with a range of technicalities. (See also this technical note on services schedules.) Continue reading “If the EU and UK fall back on WTO commitments what does this mean for services?”