Boris Johnson, seen here in Luxembourg with foreign minister Jean Asselborn, said he was confident that British business can profit from new opportunities post-Brexit. MFA Luxembourg

Boris Johnson, seen here in Luxembourg with foreign minister Jean Asselborn, said he was confident that British business can profit from new opportunities post-Brexit. MFA Luxembourg

CBI calls for customs union clarity

Whether the UK should remain in the customs union after it leaves the European Union was the main focus of Brexit debate this weekend. As Reuters and other news sources reported, Carolyn Fairbairn, the director general of the Confederation of British Industry, has called for Theresa May and her government to keep the UK in a customs union with the European Union. In an interview with Robert Peston, Fairbairn said that “the value of our frictionless trade within the European Union is worth more than having the potentially unknown value of trade deals in other parts of the world.” Fairbairn will press the case again in a speech today in which, according to Reuters, she will “call for greater urgency in Brexit talks to give clarity to companies that will otherwise need to trigger alternative plans, including moving jobs and investment offshore.”

 

Johnson rebukes CBI call

But foreign secretary Boris Johnson was quick to rebuke Fairbairn. In a tweet, he said that it “makes no sense for CBI to keep calling to stay in customs union” and went on to explain that prime minister Theresa May’s speech in Florence last year made it clear that Brexit means taking control of laws, borders, money, and trade. Johnsons said he was confident that British business can profit from new opportunities post-Brexit. “'Staying in the customs union means effectively staying in the EU: the EU is a customs union. It means no new free trade deals, no new export opportunities, and no leading role in the WTO.”

Abbas to seek EU assurances

The Times of Israel reports that Palestinian Authority President Mahmoud Abbas is to meet with EU foreign ministers on Monday and that he will “ask the European Union to officially recognize the state of Palestine.” However, the report cites diplomats and officials in Brussels saying that recognition for Palestine is not going to happen on Monday. “The EU leaves recognition in the hands of individual members--and the best Abbas can hope for is progress towards an ‘association agreement’ with the bloc.”