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12/3/18, 12:50 PMHow a soft Brexit differs from a hard one - The Economist explains

Page 1 of 6https://www.economist.com/the-economist-explains/2018/06/25/how-a-soft-brexit-differs-from-a-hard-one

The Economist explains

The Economist explains

How a soft Brexit di!ers from a hard one

And why the ultimate Brexit may be a mixture of both

Jun 25th 2018 | by J.P. The Economist explains

THE debate over the right terms and conditions for Britain’s departure from the

European Union is often simpli!ed into two clashing concepts: a soft Brexit and a

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12/3/18, 12:50 PMHow a soft Brexit differs from a hard one - The Economist explains

Page 2 of 6https://www.economist.com/the-economist-explains/2018/06/25/how-a-soft-brexit-differs-from-a-hard-one

hard one. The !rst tends to be favoured by those who voted Remain in the 2016

referendum, the second by those who voted Leave. Yet what is the real, practical

di"erence between the two? And can bits of both be combined to some degree?

A soft Brexit is usually taken to refer to one that keeps Britain closely aligned with

the EU. The objective is to minimise the disruption to trade, to supply chains and to

business in general that would be created by diverging from the EU’s regulations

and standards, thereby reducing the cost of Brexit. In practice a soft Brexit means

staying within both the EU’s single market (like Norway) and its customs union

(like Turkey). Soft Brexiteers are willing to be bound by EU rules and tari"s even

though Britain will lose any say in making them. They also accept the inevitable

consequence that it will be hard, even impossible, for Britain to do any trade deals

with third countries.

A hard Brexit rejects the whole idea of close alignment. The goal is to escape

burdensome EU regulations and tari"s, so as to be able to draw up rules and

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12/3/18, 12:50 PMHow a soft Brexit differs from a hard one - The Economist explains

Page 3 of 6https://www.economist.com/the-economist-explains/2018/06/25/how-a-soft-brexit-differs-from-a-hard-one

Jun 25th 2018 | by J.P. The Economist explains

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About The Economist

customs arrangements of Britain’s own choosing. In practice a hard Brexit means

leaving both the single market and the customs union. Hard Brexiteers believe that

staying in either would turn Britain into a “vassal state” of the EU. They are willing

to accept the short-term disruption and potentially high costs of breaking free from

Brussels, because they believe that the long-term gains from better regulation and

the striking of free-trade deals all round the world will do more than enough to

o"set them.

Theresa May’s declared policy is to take back control of Britain’s laws, borders and

money, which seems to imply a hard Brexit. She still insists on red lines that

include leaving both the single market and the customs union. Yet in the Brexit

negotiations in Brussels she has agreed to a transition during which Britain will

continue to be bound by all EU rules. And to guarantee that there will be no hard

border between Northern Ireland and the Irish Republic, she has also accepted that

there must be a “backstop” solution that keeps Britain in a customs union and in

close regulatory alignment with the EU for some years, until another way is found

of avoiding any infrastructure, customs checks or associated controls on the

border. As Mrs May keeps softening her red lines, many expect the eventual result

to combine elements from both a hard and a soft Brexit. One possible answer

would be to stay in a customs union and the single market for goods alone, but not

for services. Like most compromises, such an outcome would please neither side.

Yet both may just have to learn to live with it.

12/3/18, 12:50 PMHow a soft Brexit differs from a hard one - The Economist explains

Page 4 of 6https://www.economist.com/the-economist-explains/2018/06/25/how-a-soft-brexit-differs-from-a-hard-one

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12/3/18, 12:50 PMHow a soft Brexit differs from a hard one - The Economist explains

Page 5 of 6https://www.economist.com/the-economist-explains/2018/06/25/how-a-soft-brexit-differs-from-a-hard-one

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12/3/18, 12:50 PMHow a soft Brexit differs from a hard one - The Economist explains

Page 6 of 6https://www.economist.com/the-economist-explains/2018/06/25/how-a-soft-brexit-differs-from-a-hard-one

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