Friday, June 4, 2021

Both the decision of the United Kingdom to leave the European Union (EU) in the 2016 Brexit referendum and 2017 invocation of Article 50 of the Treaty on European Union, and the subsequent negotiations leading up to and following the EU–UK Trade and Cooperation Agreement signed December 30, 2020 were covered at length by University of Sussex professor L. Alan Winters. In a Zoom call, Wikinews spoke June 3 with Professor Winters about both the Brexit agreement and recent developments in UK trade policy to learn more about his thoughts.

Winters is professor of economics at the University of Sussex, as well as founding director and fellow of the UK Trade Policy Observatory (UKTPO). His career spans over 15 years, including as chief economist at the Department for International Development, director of the Development Research Group of the World Bank, CEO of the Migrating Out of Poverty Research Programme Consortium and advisor for the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, the Commonwealth Secretariat, the European Commission, the European Parliament, the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, the World Trade Organization and the Inter-American Development Bank.

Three reports where Winters is listed as an author were used as reference during the interview: “COVID-19 will reinforce the Brexit shock”, “The Costs of Brexit” and “Taking stock of the new UK-EU Trade and Cooperation Agreement: governance, state subsidies and the level playing field”.

Winters was awarded the title “Companion of the Most Honourable Order of the Bath”, styled C.B., on June 16, 2012 as part of the 2012 Birthday Honours.

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