Tom Quinn

Politics, Europe

What kind of Brexit will Britain now ‘get done’ now that Boris Johnson is officially steering the country toward the future?

The Conservatives’ victory in the UK general election is at once a decisive moment of clarity and a harbinger of uncertainty. Prime Minister Boris Johnson called the election with a pledge to “get Brexit done”, and with his newly-won parliamentary majority, he is now in a position to do just that.

The shape of Brexit has already been defined by the withdrawal agreement Johnson negotiated with the EU in October. It entails the UK leaving the customs union and the single market, with plans for a free-trade agreement later. As Johnson repeatedly said during the election campaign, his deal is “oven-ready”, requiring no further negotiation, and just needs parliament to pass it. Barring any last-minute mishaps, the UK will leave the EU on January 31 2020.

But that is where the certainty ends. The government’s principal election promise will have been delivered after just seven weeks back in office, leaving another five years of governing time. Some of that will involve negotiating trade deals with the EU and beyond. However, governments are usually judged on their domestic agendas, and as the election campaign showed, there is a desire among voters to focus on issues such as healthcare, public services and taxation. What can we expect from the Johnson government after January?