Brexit/Summary

BREXIT SUMMARY

The European Union

This page is intended as a simple summary of Brexit, which can be read on its own or with the other resources in this project.

Who is involved? The United Kingdom (UK), in northwest Europe. The European Union (EU), an international organization composed of the UK and 27 other countries.

What is Brexit? The word is formed from British exit - the UK is a member of the EU and wants to exit the EU.

When will Brexit take place? The leaving procedure will probably take two years from 29 March 2017 to 29 March 2019.

Where will the negotiations take place? The negotiations will take place in Brussels, where the EU headquarters are located

Why will it take two years? The leaving procedure was decided by the members of the EU in Article 50 of the Treaty on the European Union in 2007.

Donald Tusk

How will Brexit happen? The UK held a referendum in June 2016. A majority of voters supported leaving the EU. The UK Prime Minister, Theresa May, started the leaving procedure by writing a letter to Donald Tusk, the President of the European Council. There will be numerous meetings between UK and EU officials to discuss different aspects of Brexit. The two sides might or might not agree on all matters. If there is an agreement, then it will take effect on 29 March 2019. If there is no agreement, the UK will still leave, but with standard conditions from the World Trade Organization.