After three and a half years of debate, The United Kingdom will officially depart from the European Union on Friday January 31st, 2020 at 11 p.m., after almost 50 years as a member state. In a decision that has become widely known as “Brexit,” 52% of British citizens voted to leave the EU in a 2016 referendum on the issue. The first country to leave the EU, the UK will now enter into a 11-month transition phase of negotiations in which the British government must establish new trade agreements with other countries and Europe. During this transition time Britain will remain in the EU Customs Union and will follow EU laws and regulations, but will not be represented in the EU’s political institutions such as the European Parliament.
