The European Council approved a budget in the amount of five billion euros to help enterprises cope with the short-term effects of Brexit. EU special attention paid fishing, which was previously the cause of the conflict, reports Associated Press.
Money will cover costs and compensate for damages from the exit of the UK from the shopping block. At the same time, the European Council will assist both public and private business. Brexit affected many sectors of the European economy, but the fishing sector is exposed to special dangers. For this reason, the adopted assistance plan will require the EU member states to allocate at least 238 million euros (278 million dollars) to help fisheries.
According to the European Commission, the cost of the European catch in the waters of Great Britain will decrease by 25 percent. Fishing rights were one of the main stumbling blocks during Brexit negotiations. The trade agreement, adopted in December last year, provides that the EU will be able to continue fishing in the waters of Great Britain, but with a smaller catch.
December Agreement provides duty-free trade between Britain and the EU. However, the turnover between the regions declined sharply after Brexit. “Fast budget adoption means that such necessary funding will soon be available to the most affected European regions and companies,” said the representative of Slovenia Cornac.
Because of the Brexit and the consequences of the coronavirus pandemic, the export of food and beverages from the UK to the European Union for 2021 fell by two billion pounds of sterling (2.8 billion dollars). Imports from the EU also declined – the UK received 11.2 percent less products, among which pork, cheese and chicken.
In addition, the country has collided with the deficit of the personnel, which is also associated with Brexit – before that many jobs were occupied mainly by migrants, which are now experiencing difficulties with obtaining a visa.