On the European Union side, the European Parliament also approved the ratification of the agreement on 29 January 2020[40] and the Council of the European Union approved the conclusion of the agreement by e-mail on 30 January 2020. [42] That is why, on 30 January 2020, the European Union also tabled its instrument for ratification of the agreement, concluding the agreement[43] and allowing it to enter into force on the date of the UK`s withdrawal from the EU on 31 January 2020, at 11 .m GMT. On the issue of the Irish border, there is a protocol on Northern Ireland (the "backstop") which is attached to the agreement and establishes a position of withdrawal which will only come into force in the absence of effective alternative provisions before the expiry of the transition period. In this case, the UK will eclipse the EU`s common external tariff and Northern Ireland will stick to aspects of the internal market until such an event is carried out. Neither party can unilaterally withdraw from this customs union. The aim of this backstop agreement is to avoid a "hard" border in Ireland, where customs controls are needed. [19] If the Northern Ireland Assembly voted against the new regulation, two years later they would cease to apply and during that period the "joint committee" would make recommendations to the UK and the EU on what to do in this way. But this is not the case for food and animal product controls. Checks have already been carried out on live animals arriving in Northern Ireland from Great Britain, but this would be a much more comprehensive control system. This means that goods that carry the Irish Sea to Northern Ireland (but not in the other direction) must be subject to regulatory control. References to "fair competition conditions" were removed from the legally binding withdrawal agreement and were included in the non-binding political declaration. This point is already clear in the text of the withdrawal agreement, but the Attorney General gives a legal opinion on international law: everyone says that the backstop must be temporary, but it could - theoretically - remain in its place for an indefinite period.

The declaration on the future relationship between the European Union and the United Kingdom, also known as the Political Declaration, is a non-binding declaration, negotiated and signed at the same time as the mandatory and broader withdrawal agreement on the uk`s withdrawal from the European Union (EU), known as Brexit, and the planned end of the transition period. The agreement covers issues such as money, citizens` rights, border agreements and dispute resolution. It also includes a transition period and an overview of the future relationship between the UK and the EU.