Download Briefing Paper 28 Briefing Paper 28 – February 2019 Ilona Serwicka and Peter Holmes Key points Introduction Definition of free zones Free zones in the EU and globally Free zones and enterprise zones: the UK experience with regional policy interventions Rules on the operation of free zones and enterprise zones in the EU Rules on the operation of free zones and enterprise zones in non-EU countries, including EU preferential trading partners Analyses of the possible impact of free zones in the UK The Centre for Policy Studies report The Mace report The US experience of operating free zones The economic impact of free zones and enterprise zones Possible savings from the introduction of free zones in the UK Savings on tariffs inversion Savings on duty deferral Conclusion Footnotes Key points Since the referendum to leave the EU, there has been interest in the reintroduction of free zones in the UK to help boost British trade after Brexit. • All measures used for free zones and enterprise zones must be compliant with the EU state aid rules as tax exemptions and fiscal incentives are a form of subsidy. • Even free zones in non-EU countries operate under some [...]

Download Briefing Paper 27 Briefing Paper 27 – January 2019 Authors: Andy Tarrant, Peter Holmes and R. Daniel Kelemen Key points Introduction Equivalence in financial services Would equivalence as it currently exists benefit UK financial services? Mutual recognition within the EU The version of mutual recognition preferred by the UK What are the institutional differences between mutual recognition and equivalence with a third country? The different defaults under equivalence and mutual recognition Nature of the tests for establishing or withdrawing equivalence and withdrawing mutual recognition Nature of the decision-making body The difficulties for the EU in agreeing mutual recognition with the UK Political difficulty Potential legal difficulty Would equivalence with the revisions proposed by the UK in its subsequent White Paper resolve barriers to cross-border trading with the EU? Is there a precedent for the UK’s negotiating position in previous trade agreements? Don’t EU guidelines mean that UK financial services firms can establish themselves abroad, so what’s the issue? Conclusion Footnotes Key points The Withdrawal Agreement and Political Declaration do not fully determine the content of a market access agreement for financial services between the UK and the EU post-Brexit. The UK initially sought market access on a mutual recognition [...]

Download Briefing Paper Briefing Paper 20 – July 2018 Marc Busch, Michael Gasiorek, Peter Holmes, J. Brad Jensen, Rod Ludema, Emily Lydgate, Anna Maria Mayda, Pietra Rivoli, Jim Rollo, Stephen Weymouth, Rorden Wilkinson and L. Alan Winters Key points Introduction Public support for a US-UK trade agreement What is the economic case for a US-UK trade agreement? So, do the data suggest an agreement is worth pursuing? The regulatory elements of a US-UK agreement: “A TTIP for Two”? Conclusion Endnotes Key points There is public support for a US-UK trade agreement, but this sits alongside worries about existing trade agreements, particularly over NAFTA in the US, and is contingent on the kind of regulatory framework pursued. Seeking an agreement allows both countries to present themselves outwardly as pursuing a sovereign policy in their own best interests as well as constructive members of a liberal world trading order. Any meaningful agreement (economically as opposed to politically) will need to deal with the barriers to trade in services, and the regulatory barriers within specific manufacturing sectors. Given the different approaches to regulation, this may be challenging. Among the most important of challenges in negotiating a US-UK trade agreement will be [...]