Brexit: German Cars, Playground Politics and Boiled Eggs
Sam is a Business Analyst at Deutsche Bank. He is passionate about educating young minds on the financial implications of economic and political matters. He is a regular contributor to the Economic Street blog.
• Pay more for your favourite French wines, German cars and Italian brands
• Our jobs are going! Paris, Frankfurt or Brussels anyone?
• Visa checks and long queues at the airport for your holiday to Ibiza
• Go back to your country!” - Will EU citizens living in the UK be forced to
leave???
• How do you like your eggs?
The build-up to the Brexit vote was a war of 2 sides.
On one hand, the Remoaners (those who want to remain in the EU and constantly moan about the outcome of the Brexit vote) – who believe that the UK has a better future within the EU than it does outside of it. On the other hand are the Brexiteers(those who voted to leave the EU) – who believe that the UK is stronger without the burden of EU membership.
What is the one thing Remoaners and Brexiteers have in common? Campaigners from both sides tried to play on the prejudices of the British people, forcing them to make a mis-informed decision on the type of future they want with their EU neighbours.
Irrespective of how you voted, life after Brexit is still yet to be defined.
The aim of this article is to explain the potential impacts of Brexit – hopefully in a way that can be understood by all.
1. Pay more for your favourite French wines, German cars and Italian brands
Theresa May has confirmed that the UK will be leaving the EU Customs Union.
A "Customs Union" is an agreement between a group of countries to remove any restrictions on the goods they buy/sell (trade) from/to each other. Taxes are an example of restrictions on trade, which are added to imports (goods brought into the country from another country) to make them more expensive.
Leaving the Customs Union, means that this agreement to remove restrictions (taxes) will no longer apply. The impact to you?...Your favourite French red wine and that BMW you've been dreaming of buying, could become more expensive!
Understanding the situation: Playground Politics
3 playgrounds. 1 for the Primary School pupils; the 2nd for the Secondary School pupils and; the 3rd for the Sixth Form pupils. The School allows pupils to buy and sell Pokémon cards to each other during break time.
One day, a group of Sixth Form pupils shout at some of the Primary and Secondary School pupils for being childish and always playing with Pokémon cards. After the argument, the Primary and Secondary School prefects start charging a fee (tax) on any Pokémon cards bought/sold in the Sixth Form playground. As a result of the new fee (tax), the price of Pokémon cards begin to increase, making it more expensive for Sixth Form pupils to buy their favourite Pokémon cards.
2. Our jobs are going! Paris, Frankfurt or Brussels anyone?
Much like the EU’s Customs Union, the "Single Market" also consists of a group of countries who have agreed to remove the restrictions on the goods they trade with each other. However, the Single Market goes a step further.
The Single Market allows all goods AND services to be traded between its member states, without any restrictions (i.e. taxes). To enable the free movement of go