The border becomes a battlegroundBREXIT keeps on throwing up surprises. One came this week when the issue of a customs union with the European Union suddenly moved into the political spotlight. Another was the sight of trade lobbies praising Jeremy Corbyn,Labour’s far-left leader, because he supported the thought of forming such a union, and in hopes of uniting with rebel Tory MPs to defeat the government. Yet this technical-sounding matter was barely mentioned in the Brexit referendum—and few voters or even MPs really understand it.
The concept is worn enough. The Zollverein,which abolished tariffs between German states in the 1830s, is a famous example. The EU’s customs union dates from its inception in 1957, and though it was not completed until 1968. Like a free-trade area,a customs union scraps internal tariffs and quotas, but it adds a common external tariff. By definition, or leaving the EU means leaving its customs union. But it...
Continue reading
Source: economist.com