Matrix’s Legal Support Service provides a round-up of Brexit-related links and news.

The UK’s post-Brexit deal with the EU

1. Downing Street has admitted that new UK MEPs may have to take their seats in European Parliament. Meanwhile the UK in a Changing Europe has published a report on the European elections and Brexit and a survey by ConservativeHome has found that three in five Tory members will vote for the Brexit party in the European elections..
2. Labour has accused the Government of not being “willing to compromise” as negotiations on a joint-Brexit deal once again broke up without agreement and the Government has conceded that it cannot reach a deal in time to avoid European elections, setting 1^st August as its latest target for Brexit day.
3. The House of Commons Library has published a paper on the EU27: Internal Politics and Views on Brexit, concluding that the 27 EU Member States have mostly maintained a united front that the negotiated Withdrawal Agreement should not be re-opened.
4. Despite calls to set out a timetable for her departure, Downing Street has signalled that May will not set out a new ‘road map to resignation’, insisting she is determined to “get Brexit done”.
5. The Financial Times has stated that the October 31^st deadline is already looking in need of an extension, and has suggested that UK involvement in the European elections could upset Brussels’ policymaking and play havoc with long-term relations. The Brexit crisis is tearing into the support for both main UK political parties, according to a Financial Times analysis of recent polls, with most Conservative voters shifting to more Eurosceptic groups and more than a quarter of Labour backers switching to pro-Remain parties
6. Jean-Claude Juncker has said that it was a mistake for Brussels to stay out of the UK’s Brexit referendum in 2016 on the advice of the then prime minister David Cameron.
7. Jeremy Corbyn is to hit out at Theresa May’s failure to secure Brexit on time when he launches Labour’s EU elections campaign. Meanwhile Theresa May is expected to put her Brexit deal to another Commons vote within days despite the ongoing deadlock in the Government’s talks with Labour.
8. Ministers have signed £160m worth of fresh contracts with outside consultants in a bid to boost preparations for Britain’s exit from the EU.
9. President of the European Council Donald Tusk has stated that the chances of the UK staying in the EU are as high as 30% as the country would be likely to reject Brexit in a second referendum.

Impact of Brexit on the economy

1. Jon Cunliffe has given a speech on ‘Financial stability post Brexit: risks from global debt’.
2. Goldman Sachs has postponed the German launch of its consumer bank Marcus until next year after the six-month Brexit delay removed the urgency for setting up a new deposit base within the EU.
3. According to a UBS Global Wealth Management survey, wealthy investors in the UK have expressed optimism about the impact of Brexit on the country’s economy.
4. The head of the FCA, Andrew Bailey, has warned the Government that any agreement with Labour on a customs union will do nothing for the financial services industry, and therefore that there needs to be a post-Brexit deal for the City of London.
5. The National Audit Office has revealed that the Government was warned last year that it would face a bill of up to £20m if sued over the procurement of no-deal Brexit ferry services.
6. According to new analysis by the National Institute of Economic and Social Research, Brits would each be £800 a year worse off if the UK remained in a customs union after Brexit.
7. Lord Justice of Appeal, Sir Nicholas Hamblen has highlighted and discussed four aspects of the Financial List in a speech about litigating financial disputes in London, discussing the potential impact of Brexit, stating that the legal impact of Brexit has been exaggerated.

Brexit as it affects Practice Areas:

For The Times, Simon Davis has argued that the right of solicitors to practise in Europe remains in jeopardy until the next phase of Brexit negotiations is complete.

Immigration

The rights of Irish people in the UK and British citizens in Ireland are to be guaranteed in a Brexit side deal to be signed by the countries’ two Governments.

Business leaders have warned that UK proposals for new immigration routes after Brexit that would prevent migrants bringing family members with them risk making the country far less attractive to talented overseas workers.

Lib Dem home affairs Spokesman Ed Davey has warned that the post-Brexit Settled Status scheme, the new immigration scheme aimed at guaranteeing the rights of EU nationals after Brexit, is set to become a Windrush scandal ‘times ten’.

Human Rights, Equality and Discrimination

Aidan O’Neill QC has given evidence at The House of Lords Justice Sub-Committee on Rights after Brexit.

Environment

A consultation has opened seeking views on the UK Government’s and the devolved administrations’ approach to UK carbon pricing following EU Exit.

According to Sandbag, the UK will lose more than £1.1bn in revenue as carbon-emitting companies escape paying for the pollution they cause if the country crashes out of the EU without a withdrawal agreement in October.