British Prime Minister Theresa May is considering plans for an instant break from key EU regulations, including some on financial services, in a bid to maximize opportunities available to the U.K. after Brexit, Bloomberg News and Politico reported, citing senior government officials.
Promoting the upsides of Brexit will reduce the overall economic costs of the EU withdrawal, one of the officials told Bloomberg News, adding that the plan would counter an impression that the government was in a permanent "defensive crouch" in its negotiations with Brussels.
In addition to easing financial service regulations, the U.K. would leave the EU's customs union in order to seek new free-trade agreements and scrap the bloc's Common Agricultural Policy. Restrictions on EU migration was also a vital issue for the government as was the desire to spend money saved from the EU budget on public services such as the National Health Service, Politico said citing an official.
May's senior ministers have yet to agree on the plans. The proposals would likely be welcomed by the government's more enthusiastic Brexiteers, including Foreign Secretary Boris Johnson, Environment Secretary Michael Gove and Trade Secretary Liam Fox, but resisted by others.
