Today, the UK Civil Aviation Authority (CAA) ran a European Union (EU) exit webinar for aircraft Maintenance Organisations (Part-145)[1]. Negotiations between the UK and the EU on aviation safety requirements continue. This series of UK CAA hosted webinars is to update civil aviation on what the UK may look like from 1st January 2021.
It’s worth noting that the Chair of the UK Civil Aviation Authority, Sir Stephen Hillier[2] will be on a Royal Aeronautical Society webinar on the 19th November 2020. Questions and comments on Brexit are sure to come up. It’s clear the UK will leave Europe’s aviation safety regulator at end of 2020.
I’m writing at a moment when the News is again sounding pessimistic about the UK-EU negotiations. The time remaining on the clock for a possible deal is running out. Once a final legal text is agreed there are still numerous parties who must read it and take it all in.
In England, until 2 December businesses are in lockdown routine. Everyone is doing what they can to stop the spread of coronavirus. The time left to change how businesses operate and adapt to a new UK-EU relationship is ebbing away rapidly.
Even in November, because of COVID-19 we are being told to open windows regularly to let fresh air in. One hope is that they are doing this in the rooms where the UK-EU negotiations are taking place.
In a recent speech former UK Prime Minister (PM) John Major pointed out that Brexit set to be “more brutal than anyone expected”[3]. It doesn’t take much to see why. Given that the referendum vote was back in June 2016 it’s astonishing that UK-EU negotiations are not wrapped up by now.
My impression is that a referendum and the subsequent General Elections have put our entire political system into perpetual campaigning mode. The problem is that Governing mode and campaigning mode are not good bedfellows. At this moment that clash is being played out inside Number 10 Downing Street.
I’d like to sound optimistic but there’s more dismantling going on than building. It’s easier to smash up the house than it is to build a new one.
[1] https://info.caa.co.uk/uk-eu-transition/
[2] https://www.aerosociety.com/events-calendar/raes-webinar-brabazon-named-lecture-2020/
[3] https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-politics-54879209
John Vincent 