THE IoD AND THE TRANSITION

The Institute of Directors (IoD) have published a report about the transitional period they think is needed after March 2019 (HERE) called Bridging the Brexit Gap. It's a thoughtful piece of work, even obvious and in a normal world no one would have believed it was even necessary for an employers organisation like the IoD to publish a document aimed squarely at the government - which if you needed reminding is a Conservative one.

Effectively, they would like the status quo - or something very close to it - to continue after March 2019 until such time as a new free trade deal comes into effect. This they argue would mean business and industry would have just one "cliff edge" to negotiate, the one at the end of the transition period and just before the FTA begins. This is to me perfectly logical.

If we have a transition period which is different to the status quo and different to the FTA, the industry will need to prepare for two cliff edges.  

But as we know logic does not enter into it. Brexiteers, like Peter Lilley (HERE), say we do not need a transition period at all and in March 2019 we simply leave the EU and trade with them either under a FTA that nobody thinks is remotely plausible or under WTO rules - for a short or long period - until a full FTA is ready. In other words probably two sizeable cliff edges.  This is lunacy but the Brexiteers wilfully refuse to see it and imagine any transitional period is a ruse to remain in the EU.