The European Parliament is ready to ratify the post-Brexit trade agreement

European Union legislators are ready to formally ratify the post-Brexit agreement between the EU and the United Kingdom. The document, completed on Christmas Day, has already been ratified by the British Parliament and has entered into force conditionally, pending approval by the European Parliament. Disagreements over the way trade rules are applied in Northern Ireland have previously threatened to delay the vote on ratification, but a large majority are in favor of an agreement. The results of the European Parliament's vote should be announced on Wednesday, almost five years after the decision of British voters to leave the bloc. "This agreement is not good because Brexit is not good. The situation is also complicated because we cannot be sure how credible the British Government is. Nevertheless, this agreement can be a starting point for the reconstruction of what we have lost as a result of Brexit, "said German MEP Terry Reintke. The European Union's top officials and their British counterparts have so far failed to find common ground in the implementation of the so-called Northern Ireland Protocol on Trade Rules for Northern Ireland. London has decided to unilaterally extend the withdrawal period for inspections of goods transported between Britain and Northern Ireland to the period from 1 April, which according to the EU constitutes a violation of the said protocol. The purpose of this document was to secure an open border between Northern Ireland and Ireland after Brexit. The withdrawal period for controls on agri-food products entering Northern Ireland was due to expire at the end of last month, but the British government decided to extend it until October. These controls have upset the fragile political balance in Northern Ireland, a part of the United Kingdom where some people consider themselves British and others Irish, and hard borders could disrupt the Irish peace process.