On June 23, 2016, 52 percent of the 32 million United Kingdom citizens who voted in the referendum to assess popular support for Brexit opted for the UK to leave the European Union. The climactic conclusion, that the largest member of the European Union would secede from the organization, was set to occur two years later, on March 29, 2019. Since then, Brexit has been delayed twice and negotiations between UK Prime Minister Boris Johnson and the European Union appear to be at a standstill.

Junior Edward Zhang expresses his discontent with the way talks are moving forward between the United Kingdom and the European Union.

“Back in 2016, everyone was talking about Brexit,” Zhang said. “It even became a meme. I guess it’s pretty disappointing to see that nothing significant has actually happened in the two years since the announcement of Brexit.”

Much of the discord that is preventing the UK’s secession from the European Union has to do with the border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland after Brexit, an issue that has been the predominant talking point in negotiations. This is because, after Brexit, the 310-mile Irish border will serve as the sole land demarcation between the UK and the EU. 

Theresa May, the former Prime Minister of the UK and leader of the initial Brexit charge, included in her original deal, the idea of a ‘backstop,’ which would keep the UK in close relations with the EU until a trade deal permanently avoiding the need for border checks is agreed upon. The Conservative MP’s maintained strong opposition to the idea, claiming that the UK would inevitably maintain close relations with the EU indefinitely, without ever agreeing on a trade deal.

Following May’s resignation, current Prime Minister Boris Johnson included in his most current version of the Brexit deal that the UK will legally maintain a customs border between Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, however, border checks will only occur on goods entering Ireland from Great Britain.

Because the European Union has yet to respond to the UK’s plea to extend the deadline to Jan. 31, 2020, the current deadline for the UK’s exit from the European Union is Oct. 31. If negotiations have not moved forward by then, both organizations risk a ‘no-deal,’ in which the UK leaves the European Union with no negotiations. 

Without some sort of deal between the UK and the European Union to transition the separation while maintaining economic relations, an overnight Brexit would trigger 4 percent tariffs on trade between the organizations, ramp up trade barriers between the UK and the EU, and deter investment in the Euro. In fact, in Nov. 2018, the Bank of England found that the UK’s economy could contract by 8% in the event of a no-deal Brexit and the Office for Budget Responsibility found that the UK would likely dip into recession in the aftermath.

Upon hearing of the potential results of a No-Deal Brexit, Sophomore Zaid Ahmed explains the urgency of UK-EU negotiations.

“Clearly, a No-Deal Brexit should be avoided at all costs,” Ahmed said. “With the economic livelihoods of millions of UK citizens on the line, I truly hope that the United Kingdom and the European Union are able to come to terms on Brexit.”