UK MPs approve EU trade agreement, paving way for orderly Brexit

Addis Ababa, December 31, 2020 (FBC) -The United Kingdom’s Parliament has voted in favour of the post-Brexit trade deal thrashed out between the country and the European Union, paving the way for the agreement to come into force on January 1.

MPs in the lower chamber House of Commons voted 521 to 73 in favour of the EU (Future Relationship) Bill on Wednesday, a day before the UK severs ties with the bloc as the Brexit transition period comes to an end.

The bill puts into law the deal on a new relationship agreed between the 27-nation EU and the UK last week.

The UK Parliament’s unelected upper chamber, the House of Lords, will now start its own debate on the agreement.

The debate in the House of Lords is expected to last for several hours, which means the bill may not be turned into binding British law until late in the evening on Wednesday.

The bill cannot be turned into law in the UK unless it is voted through by both houses of parliament and gets formal royal assent from Queen Elizabeth II.

Source: Aljazeera