‘Brexit envy’ grows in Switzerland

Britain has finally negotiated a deal with the European Union. The European Court of Justice will not act as a court of arbitration. Some Swiss voices are now calling for Switzerland to get the same deal. The UK and the EU managed to agree on a last-minute trade deal after all. It will come into force provisionally on January 1. This will prevent customs duties being imposed on exports and imports in the new year. Free trade without EU membership: that sounds like what British Prime Minister Boris Johnson was after, and something he’ll try to sell as a victory at home. The British have also managed to talk the EU out of using the European Court of Justice (ECJ) as a court of arbitration. Instead, a partnership-based body is to rule on disputes. And the Brexit deal does not include the automatic adoption of EU law. However, despite the deal uncertainty hangs over huge chunks of the relationship between Britain and the EU. The agreement covers trade in goods, but it leaves the UK’s...